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THE AMERICAN f 




A COMPLETE READY REFERENCE LIBRARY 




MANUAL 



Farmers, Gardeners, Fruit Growers 
and Stockmen. 



THE PHELPS PUBLISHING CO. 
SPRINGFIELD, MASS. 



..•-^:w^ 






A CHARMING ORNAMENT FOR YOUR PARLOR TABLE 1 

Gems of Art and Poetry. 

Thisis the title of a beautiful Portfolio or Album, recently published. Gkms op Art 
AND Poetry is unquestionably one of the most beautiful and attractive gift-boolvs ever 
issued. It is a book of 32 pages, size of page 9>^ by 12 inches, of heavy super-calendered 
paper, and is tilled with beautiful wood and reproduction steel engravings and line poetry. 
There is a beautiful ensraving upon every page, and upon some pages more than one. The 
poetry is in keeping with the character of the illustrations and consists of some of the 
choicest productions of the following world-famous authors: Alfred Tennyson, J. G. Whittier, 
H. W. Longfellow, Bayard Taylor, D. R. Locke, Jean Ingelow, Alice Cary, and many others. 
The names of these famous authors will be a sufficient guarantee of the high cliaracter 
of the poetical contents of the book. The illustrations are by tlie most famous artists in 
America, and consist of landscapes, woodland views, wild mountain scenery, beautiful views 
of rivers and brooks, artistic floral and other devices, beautiful designs from nature in 
woodland, field, and dell; pictures of childhood, pictures of birds arid animals, pleasing 
home subjects, etc.. etc. "Gems of Art and Poetry "is handsomely bound in Granite 
covers, arid is one of the most beautiful and attractive adornments for the parlor table that 
could be devised. It would grace the most luxurious home. Remember, it contains 32 large 
pages of beautiful pictures and charming poems, and is substantially and handsomely 
bound. Tlieholiday gift books that sell at $5.00 or $6.00 per copy contain no finer or more 
beautiful engravings than does our " Gems op Art and Poetry." The typography and 
presswork are in the higlie^t style of the printer's art, the paper is of the best, and the bind- 
ing very attractive. It is a book for every lover of tlie beautiful and will be treasured by all 
■who possess a copy. As we turn its many pages, it is a continuous succession of delightful 
surprises, from the first to the last page in the work. No description, however, could 
possibly do justice to this beautiful and elaborate work. It must be seen to be appreciated. 
It would make one of the most beautiful and attractive presents for a friend or relative that 
could be procured. This charming book will be sent by mail, post paid, upon receipt of price, 
only T\»-enty-flve Cents. 

Address all orders : THE PHKLPS PUBLISHING CO., 

Springrfield, Mass. 



THE FAVORITE ALBUM 

OF SONGS AND BALLADS. 



Andante espress. 







The Favorite Album op Songs and Ballads, recently published, contains thirty-two 
pieces of choice and popular vocal music, full sheet music size, witii complete words and 
music and piano accompaniment. The music is finely printed upon heavy paper, and neatly 
bound in one large and hand.'^ome book, with a very attractive cover. The following are the 
titles of the somrs and ballads contained in tlie Favorite Album: 

As I'D Nothing Else to Do ; The Dear Old Songs of Home; Mother, Watch the 
Little Feet; Oh, Yor Pretty Blue-Eyed Witch; Blue Eyes; Katey's Letter; The 
Passing Bell; I Saw Esau Kissing Kate; Won't You Tell Me Why, Robin; The Old 
Garden Gate; Down Below the Waving Lindens; Faded Leaves; All among the 
Summer Roses; Touch THE Harp Gently, My Pretty Louise; I Really Don't Think 
I Shall Marry; Dreaming of Home; The Old Cottage Clock; Across the Sea; 
There's a Silver Lining to Every Cloud; Strangers Yet; Not Yet; Somebody; A 
Year Ago; Bachelor's Hall; Ruth and I; Good Night; One Happy Year Ago; .Tenny 
IN THE Orchard; The Old Barn Gate; Jack's Farewell; Polly; Whisper in the 
Twilight. . , , ^ , 

This i s a very fine collection of real vocal gems, and gotten up in very handsome style. 
Published in the usual way and bought at a' music store, these 32 pieces would cost you 
$11.20; here you have them all complete in one handsome book. It should be remembered 
tliat this is not a cheap, poorly printed affair, but a handsomely bound book, and the pages 
are the full size of sheet music as sold in the stores. Every lover of music slunild possess 
a copy. The Favorite Album of Songs and Ballads will be sent by mail, post paid, upon 
receipt of only T-iventy-flve Cents. 



Address all orders : 



THE PHELPS PUBLISHING CO., 

Springfield, Ma.s.s. 



no ^ f\ '\ftht^ 



THE AMERICAN 



^^'arm and Stock Manual. 



A COMPLETE READY REFERENCE LIBRARY 



FOR 



FARMERS, GARDENERS, FRUIT GROWERS 
AND STOCKMEN, 

CONTAINING A LARGE FUND OF USEFUL INFORMATION, 
FACTS, HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS, 



a ^. 



a 



/ 



IN THE VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS OF 



AGRICULTURE, HORTICULTURE, LIVE STOCK RAISING, PQULTRY 

KEEPING, BEE KEEPING, DAIRY FARMING, FERTILIZERS, 

RURAL ARCHITECTURE, FARM IMPLEMENTS, Etc. 



With One Hundred and Eighty-three iLmsTMiiONS. 



Springfield, Mass, 
THE PHELPS PUBLISHING CO, 




[886. 



COPYRKiMT BY 

F. M. LUPTON 

1886. 



O3'-/ 



THE FARM 



RURAL ARCHITECTURE. 




AN INEXPENSIVE COTTAGE. — ELEVATION. 

An Inexpensive Cottage.— -We give the plan of a neat and beautiful 
country cottage, the low cost of construction of Avhich adapts it to the wants 
of those in moderate circumstances, while, in attractive appearance and gen- 
eral convenience, it rivals those of a much higher cost. 

This cottage is designed in the rural Gothic or English manner, but 
much modified, so as to adapt it to almost any site. The light, open porch 
may be omitted without injuring the design. In the plan, .1 is the porch, 
from which we enter the hall or entry, 8 feet wide, Avith the two best rooms, 
each 16x18 feet, on either side of it. Conneoted with the living-room, in its 
rear, is a good pantry. B is the back entry, communicating with the kitchen. 
C is the back porch, which may be left open in summer, and inclosed in win- 
ter, when it will serve as a place for coal and wood. On one side of the 
kitchen fire-place is a closet, and on the other a sink, into which, if possible, 



12 



THE FABM. 



a water-pipe should be brought. The first story of this cottage is 10 feet, 
and the second story 5 feet, on the sides, and 8 feet in the middle of ibe 
rooms. The pitch of the roof is a right angle. The cost of this cottage, with 
the interior neatly finished and painted hi oil color, and the two principal 
rooms grained and varnished like oak, and their walls papered with suitable 
paper — all the other rooms having brown walls whitewashed — would be 
about $800. 

An Oriianiental Coviiitry Cottage. — We give on pages 13 and 14 illus- 
trations of a plan and elevation of a cheap, but very ornamental, country 
cottage, which will be found both convenient and comfortable for a small 
family. If this plan is not extensive enough to meet your wants, it can be 
easily enlarged upon by making additions, or by enlarging the size of the 

whole plan, and thus in- 
creasing the dimensions of 
the rooms. This, however, 
would necessarily add to 
the cost of construction. 
The cottage, as shown in 
our illustration, presents a 
V e r y aristocratic appear- 
ance, and, considering the 
small amount of money re- 
quired for its construction, 
is, we think, a very desir- 
able plan for a cheap and 
good dwelling-house. The 
dimensions of the rooms on 
the ground floor are plainly 
given in our second illustra- 
tiou. The porch, with its 
seat, is large and roomy; 
the living-room is of good 
size, well lighted by a 
square bay-window. The 
kitchen is well supplied 
with closets. The first floor 
could be very much im- 




AN INEXPENSIVE COTTAGE. — GROUND PLAN. 



proved by adding a one-story kitchen at the rear, making the living-room 
into a parlor, and the kitchen into a dining and sitting-room; the additional 
cost would be very small. The second floor contains three bedrooms, very 
conveniently arranged, and each provided with a closet. The two down- 
stairs rooms and the large front bedroom are supplied with open fire-places, 
the value of which for ventilation is so often overlooked in cheap houses. 
Besides this, there should be ventilating tubes or shafts in the chimney 
sides, with registers opening from each room, thus insuring a good system 
of ventilation. The roof should be ventilated by openings under the pro- 
jected eaves. The estimated cost of this building is from $1,200 to $1,800, 
according to locality and style of finish. 

Oeneral Suggestions to Tliose Intending to Build. — The following 
excellent recommendations are fi-om the American Home and Farm Cydo- 
ptedia: Farmers can afiford to leave cellar-kitchens, basements, third stories, 
and all other unnecessarv stair-climl)ing devices to their city cousins, who 



RUttAL AliCHTTECTlTRE, 



13 



have to count the cost of every square Soot they build i^^on. The only ad- 
vantage of second stories in the country is that they are more healthful for 
sleeping apartments. 

If every fire has a separate flue, and each flue terminates in its own par- 
ticular chimney-top, there will never be any trouble over smoking fires, if 
the chimney is high enough. 

Proper care in the arrangement of varioiis rooms will save those who 
have to do the housework a thousand needless steps. Kitchen and dining- 




AN ORNAMENTAL COUNTRY COTTAGE.— ELEVATION. 

room should always be adjoining apartments. The china closet best opens 
into the dining-room. A trap-door connecting the pantry with the dining- 
room is a great convenience. It is well to have the wood-shed very near the 
kitchen, and connected with it by a covered way, avoiding exposure in in- 
clement weather. 

An attic over the entire house, with a window at each end, will be found 
of signal utility for drying clothes in bad weather. 

Provide plenty of closets and cupboards in all of the rooms. The lady of 
the house, who is the (me most vitally interested hi this matter, should not 



14 



THE FAtiM. 



be allowed to insist upon this in vain. Varnishing wood will make the paint 
last longer, and saves incalculable elbow grease in house-cleaning. 

Shingles of cedar will last from thirty to forty years, and those of pine 
from twelve to twenty years. 

In the arrangement of out-buildings, the following relative proximity will 
be found convenient: First, the house; attached to that the kitchen- wing, 
with wood-house appended; then, at a little distance, the pi'ivy, carriage- 
house, and workshop, with pig-sty and poultry-hoiise adjoined. 

Stone and bi-ick walls should always be furred off, leaving an air space 
between the stonework and plastering throughout the entire wall, and open- 




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AN OENAMENTAL COTTNTKY COTTAGE. — GllOUND PLAN 



ing into the attic. This prevents dampness, and insures an equable tem- 
perature. Brick houses must have a slate, sheet-copper, or tarred paper 
cut-off inserted in the foundation just beloAv the water-shed, as otherwise 
the moisture of the ground is M'orked up by the brick, keeping the Avails con- 
stantly damp. 

Frame houses may be made much warmer and more comfortable than 
tfhey usiially are by covering the studding with tongued and grooved 
sheathing, and this in turn by tarred building paper, placing the weather 
boarding over the whole. Fit the sheathing and weather boarding closely 
around door and window-frames, and let the tarred paper lap over a little 
where there is likelv to be a crack. 



li Uli A L A R CHI TE C T U li E. 15 

Where ingrain carpets are to be used, it favors their economical cutting 
to have either the length or breadth of each room some multiple of their 
usual width— one yard— as twelve feet, flfteen feet, etc. 

Construction of an Octagonal Barn. — There are various plans for 
laying out and building barns of this shape, in all of which the principles arc 
the same. There is a concrete or stone foimdation wall, which may be either 
below ground for a cellar or partially below it for a basement, or wholly 
above it for a stable, an inclined Avay being built on two opposite sides to 
give access to the barn floor. Upon this foundation the sills are laid, the 
corners being made at an angle of 135 degrees, instead of 90 degrees, as in 
the square building. There are no cross-beams necessary except upon the 
floor, there being eight bents in the building, all on the outside, the plates 




FIG. 1. — ELEVATION OF AN OCTAGONAL BAKN. 

being mortised exactly as the sills are, and the posts placed with regard to 
the necessary doors and windows, and the strength necessary to support the 
roof and stiffen the building. As many braces as may be thought needful 
limy be used, but the braces must all be on the lines of the walls, and none 
of them cross-braces. The roof is an eight-sided cone, strengthened with 
purlin plates, and may be open at the center for a cupola or ventilator. The 
joints of all the plates and the sills Avill be at an angle of 62 1-2 degrees, in- 
stead of 45 degrees, as in a square building. Tliis form of the frame will 
give a roof of the strongest kind— one that cannot spread, if well put to- 
gether, and one that offers less resistance to the wind than any other form 
of elevated roof. Inside of the barn there is nothing to interfere with the 
jflling of grain or hay to the roof, and a wagon may be driven anywhere upon 



IG 



THE FARM, 




FIG. 2.— PLAN OF BASEMENT. 



the floor. The plan of the basement is shown at Fig. 2, a being a passage 
for the cows, and a drive-way for removing the manure; h, h, are the stalls 
for the cows, of which there are fifty-two, having the feed-trough toward the 
center, and all reached by an inner drive-way. There are six stalls, and a 

room at each end of the 
stalls for harness. At e 
is a place for storing 
plows, carriages, wagons, 
or machines. A drive- 
way (f, f) passes through 
the basement from east 
to west. As many win- 
dows as needed may be 
built in the Avail. The 
sills of the barn are laid 
upon the wall, as already 
mentioned; the posts are 
28 feet high, and the 
plates upon these sup- 
port the rafters. The 
plates are fastened to- 
gether at the ends by be- 
ing halved, and the cor- 
ners fastened by half-inch 
iron bolts, as shoAvn at 
Fig. 3. At each corner 
is a brace of 8x8 timber, 
bolted to and through the plates by three-quarter-inch bolts, and stx-ength- 
ened by an iron plate on the inside, through Avhicli the bolts pass. The 
shoulders of the corner rafters rest upon these braces and plates, as shown 
at Fig. 4. These rafters are of 6x12 timber. Purlin plates of 8x10 inch tim- 
ber are bolted under the rafters, and are fastened together at the comers in 
the same manner as the plates. The intermediate rafters rest upon these 
purlins. Iron tie-rods may be used to 
strengthen the rafters and hold them to- 
gether, if thoiight necessary. Fig. 1 shoAVS 
the elevation, with a portion of the roof re- 
moved to shoAV the manner of laying the 
rafters and bridging them. A croAvn rim is 
bolted to the rafters at the point of the roof 
— or, rather, the rafters are bolted to the 
croAA-n rim — Avhich siipports a cupola. The 
cupola is fifty feet from the floor of the barn, 
the roof rising tAventy-two feet, and the post 
being twenty-eight feet high. The floor of 
the barn is laid upon beams, supported by 
brick piers or timber posts in the basement. 

A line of beams may be laid above the floor on either side, above which 
floors may be laid; the space thus made may be used for granaries, or stor- 
age of farm tools or machines, or other cumbrous property. 

Plan for a Barii._We present hercAvith a plan for a new and improved 
barn. For convenience, neatness of appearance, and practical utility, it Avill 




3.— CORNER JOINT. 
FIG. 4.— CORNER BRACE. 



RURAL ARCHITECTVRE. 



17 



be fouud most excellent, and should any of our readers contemplate build- 
ing, they would do well to give this article a careful study; and should they 
not desire to follow out the plan to the letter, they might still be able to gain 
from it some valuable hints in planning a barn of a different style. The fol- 
lowing is the description of the plan we have illustrated: 

A, stables, 8x28, for nine coavs, earth floor; B, man's room; C, caniages; 

D, harness room; E, meal 

or shorts; F, shelled corn; 
G, oats; H, passage-way; I, 
passage-way, 4 feet wide, 
platform floor, with pump; 
L, box for mixing feed; M, 
stairs; N, O, stalls, 5 feet 
wide; P, Q, R, stables, 6 
feet Avide; S, feed-bin for 
cattle; V, feed-box for 
horses; W, wagon shed, 
earth floor, 18x21; X, v/agon 
shed, open at south and 
east, 9x17; Y, tool room, 
9x10; Z, feed-bin; W, T, 
water-trough. 

Main barn, 30x42 feet; 
posts, 18 feet in the clear; 
shed wing, 26x30 feet; posts, 
12 feet in clear; lean-to shed, 
14 feet wide, 42 feet long- 
all to have roof at one-third 
angle of rise. 

There will be 230 feet in 
length of wall underground, 
to be built of rough stone 1 
foot high and 18 inches thick. 
Upon this is to be laid, in 
courses, quarried stone, in 
blocks, not less than 8x12 
inches, 1 foot high and 1 
foot thick, and all pointed. 
There will be required 
twelve piers, each 18 inches 
square and 2 feet high; 
these to be built of stone, 
and four of them to have 
the upper stone 12x18 
inches. All to be laid in 
good strong lime mortar, 
and in a workman-like and 
substantial manner. There will be required for sills 384 feet in length of 8x8 
timber, and 42 feet in length, 6x8; this last for the sill in front of cones in 
lean-to shed. For posts, girts of main beams, plates, etc., etc., there will be 
required 913 feet in length, of QxQ. For purhn beams, girts, etc., there will 
be required 454 feet of length, 4x6; and for intermediate girts, braces, etc., 
394 feet of length, of 3x4 stuff. The sides should all be of oak or white pine. 




18 



'THE FARM. 



The main beams, purlins, posts, girts, etc., may be of oak, ash, red bircli, 
white pine, or white wood. The joists are to be of oak or white pine, and 
these will be required as follows: 103 pieces, each 14 feet long, 2x8; 20 pieces, 
each 9 feet long, 2x8; 20 pieces, each 10 1-2 feet long, 2x8; and 11 pieces, each 
8 feet long, 2x8. The rafters will be as follows: 4:2, each 19 feet long, 2x4 at 





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one end and 4x6 at the other, for the main beam; 21, each 17 feet long, 3x4, 
for the lean-to shed; and 30, each 16 feet long, 2x4 at one end and 3x5 at the 
junction of the first with the second stories (as shown from outside). There 
should be a strip inserted of 2x2. The frieze board to be 8 inches wide and 
2 inches thick. The boards all to be straight edge, and the whole to be bat- 
tened with strips one inch thick and three inches wide, having the edges 
beveled half an inch, exhibiting a face of two inches. The whole to be of 
good, merchantable, dry piae timber. The roof boards may be of any light 



RUB A L A B an J TE C T UR E. 



19 



and durable timber, and shall be laid so that no space of over two inches 
may be found. That portion of the roof which projects beyond the up- 
right portion of the building shall be of double thickness. The shingles are 
to be of the best quality, and laid only 4 inches to the weather. The win- 
dows are to be made as per plan, all frames to be of seasoned pine, free 
from knots. The sash windows of 12 lights, each 9x12 inches, except two, 
viz., one in south end of main barn, and one 
in east side of same; these to be as shown m 
plan. The blind windows to be hung with 
butt hinges, and fastened with hasp hooks, 
both outside and inside. They are to swing 
outward. 

The doors are all to be formed to present 
an appearance outside same as balance of 
barn. They are to be jack-planed sufiicient- 
ly to render them ft-ee of splinters in hand- 
ling. They are to be placed and formed of 
height, width, etc., as shown in plan. They >. 
are all to be hung with wrought-iron strap o 
hinges, and secured by latches and hasp hook g 
staples. " ^ 



A Complete Stock. Bai-n. — We present H 
herewith an illustrated plan, with careful de- '^ 
scription, of a complete stock barn, embrac- o 
ing many good and sensible points in its ^ 
construction, from which we trust our friends > 
may gather some valuable sxrggestions. ^ 

The body of the main barn is 100 feet long *| 
by 50 feet Avidc, the posts 18 feet high above ^ 
the sill, making 9 bents. The beams are 14 ^ 
feet above the sills, which is the height of the % 
inner posts. The position of the floor and o 
bays is readily understood from the plan. • 
The floor, for a grain barn, is 14 feet wide, 
but may be contracted to 12 feet for one ex- 
clusively for hay. The area in front of the 
bays is occupied with a stationary horse- 
power and with machinery for various farm 
operations, such as threshing, shelling corn, 
cutting straw, crushing grain, etc., all of 
which is driven by bands from drums on 
the horizontal shaft overhead, which runs 
across the floor from the horse-power on 
the other side; this shaft being driven by 
a cog-wheel on the perpendicular shaft round which the horses travel. 

A passage four feet wide extends between the bays and the stables, which 
occupy the two wings. This extends up to the top of the bays, down which 
the hay is thrown for feeding, which renders this work as easy and conven- 
ient as possible. 

A one-sided roof is given to the sheds (instead of a double-sided), to 
throw all the wa^;er on the outside, in order to keep the interior of the 
yards dry. Eave-troughs take the water from the roofs to cisterns. The 



20 



THE FARM. 



cisterns, if connected by an underground pipe, may be all drawn from by a 
single pump if necessary. 

The floor of the main barn is three feet higher than that of the stables. 
This will allow a cellar under it, if desired— or a deeper extension of the 
bays — and it allows storage lofts over the cattle, with sufficient slope of 
roof. A short flight of steps at the ends of each passage, admits easy access 
from the level of the barn floor. 

The sheds, Avhich extend on the three sides of the barn, and touch it at 
the rear end, are on a level with the stables. An inclined plane, from the 
main floor through the middle of the back shed, forms a rear egress for 
wagons and carts, descending three feet from the floor. The two rooms, 
one on each side of this rear passage, 16 by 34 feet, may be used for housing 
sick animals, coSvs about to calve, or any other purpose required. The sta- 
bles at the front ends of the sheds are convenient for teams of horses or oxen, 
or they may be fitted for wagon houses, tool houses, or other purposes. The 
rooms, 16 feet square at the inner corners of the sheds, may be used for 
weak cAves, lambs, or for a bull stable. 

Backs or mangers may be fitted up in the open sheds for feeding sheep 



6HECS 



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A COMPLETE sr( 



iiiorxn PLAN. 



or young cattle, and yards may l)c built adjoining, on the rear, six or eight 
in number, into which they may nin and be kept sepa'rate. Barred parti- 
tions may separate the different flocks. Bars may also enclose the opening 
in front, or they may, if required, be boarded up tight. Step ladders are 
placed at convenient intervals, for ascending the shed lOfts. 

A granary over the machine room is entered by a flight of stairs. Poles 
extending from bay to bay, over the floor, will admit the storage of much 
additional hay or grain. 

A Convenient Barn— A recent inquiry about how to build a barn, 
writes a correspondent of an agricultural periodical, tempts me to describe 
mine, Avhich I think very handy. My barn is situated on a side hill with an 
incline of about seven feet in forty to the Avest. There is a bridge at each 
end for a driveway, only one of Avhich is shown in our illustration. Fig. 1. 

On the right, as you enter the main door, the bays extend down to the 
ground nine feet. Under the main floorway I keep my sheep. Under the 
bridge each end is open, to give the sheep plenty of light and air, as it will 
not do to keep them too warm. In stormy weather I close the doors. On 



RURAL ARCHITECTURE. 



21 




the left of the niaiu flooi-way is the cow linter, and, beneath, the pig pen. The 
arrangement will be more readily understood from the illustration, Fig. 2. 

1. Sheep pen; 2. Bam floorway; 3. Standing floor in the linter; 4. Cows' 
manger; 5. Iron strap used instead of stanchion; 6. Tie chain; 7. A trough 
filled Avith dirt or sawdust for the animals', front feet to stand on, thus pre- 
venting slipping; 8. Cows' feed door; 9. Shoeps' feed door; 10. Sheep rack; 
11. Pig pen; 12. Windows used for 
cleaning sheep pens and pig pens; 
13. Tight partition; 14. Walk liehind 
the cows; 15. Scuttle for cleaning out 
manure. 

It will be noticed that the door 
through which the sheep are fed 
opens downward, and does not con- 
flict Avith the cows' feed door, Avhich 
lifts upward. By having these doors 
the linter can be closed up tight in 
cold Aveather, and the cattle Avill 

keep warm. The main part of the ^ convenient babn.-fig. 1. 

barn need not be clap-boarded. So 

long as the roof is tight and the hay does not get Avet, it is no injury to the 
fodder to have it Avell ventilated. This ventilation is indeed beneficial and 
necessary to carry off from the fodder the effluvia from the manure in the 
cellar. 

Clieap Barn Cellar. — But comparatively few farmers (as compared to 
the masses) have yet been convinced that it Avill pay to construct a root-cel- 
lar, and then to raise the roots to fill it with, but for all that, those who have 

provided themselves Avith cel- 
lars find they pay. As it is not 
always convenient to have one 
beneath the barn, it may be 
built above ground as follows: 
Dig down three feet the size 
desired; twelve by tAventy feet 
makes a good large cellar; and 
ten ])y sixteen feet Avill do for 
six or eight hundred bushels. 
Get on hand a lot of small logs 
or poles from six to ten inches 
in diameter, with which to build 
the portion above ground. Cut 
the poles for each side three feet 
longer than the Avidth or length 
of the excavation. Place the first 
two poles on flat stones or blocks 
back a foot from the edge of the hole dug, and upon opposite sides. Flat- 
ten the ends Avith the ax and lay two cross poles as you would in starting a 
log house. In these end pieces one foot from the end cut notches for the 
next side poles to lie in. With each round, set the side poles in a foot, 
which will give a regular slant to the roof, and make a very strong frame for 
the weight that is to come upon it. The end that is to contain the door 
should be carried up straight, while the other may be slanted up, as the sidee. 




A CONVENIENT BARN. — FIG 



22 



HIE FARM. 



Cover this frame with cull or common lumber, laying the boavds on up 
and down. Next put on a heavy layer of marsh hay or straw to keep the 
dirt from coming in contact Avith and rotting the lumber; over this put a 
1k)0i of earth. A shute should be provided for tilhug the house, and a small 
ventilation flue for winter. The end where the door is located should be 




double boarded and filled in betAveen with saw-dust or cut straw; there 
should also be a double door. A storing house of this kind, if well made, 
will last eight or ten years, and give as good satisfaction as one costing $200. 

How an old Barn was Improved— We present herewith a brief de- 
scription of how an old bam was remodeled and greatly improved without 
much expense, and furnish illustrations sho-ndng the bawi after the changes 



nURAL ARCHITECTTIBE. 



23 



had been made, and the plan of the basement underneath in detail. By a 
careful study of this plan, our readers may be able to gather some valuable 
hints and suggestions. The original building was the common 32x42 feet 
barn, with fourteen posts, a fourteen-feet floor in the middle, with bay on 
one side and stable on the other, with a lean-to of thirteen feet in the rear, 
the building standing on the line of the road and facing the west, the 
grounds descending say one foot in thirty to northeast. It was first raised 
so that the northeast corner would clear six feet, dug out to a level of one 
foot beloAV that of the lowest corner; then a ditch was dug one and a half 
feet below that under the outside sills, all around which was filled with 



ITTTT 



AJANUHE SNEO 



8 STALLS 
28XJ2 



.IT 



ALLEY JJX28 



\ //AY SHOOT 



0AY ¥£X20 



Ah 



■'\ 



ROAD 

AN OLD BAKN IMPROVED. — PLAN OP BASEMENT. 



small stone. A substantial stone wall was laid on the west side, and twenty 
feet on both north and south ends; the rest of the building was double- 
boarded save where protected by other buildings. The front doors were 
then closed, the floor taken up, cut out the bay girts, and laid off a floor of 
twenty feet on the west side (space reaching from the ground to roof), made 
a floor twelve feet wide in upright and all of lean-to — in all twenty-five feet, 
and cut a door in south end. The bay now Avould hold more than the whole 
barn before; a lai-ge floor, 25x42, thirteen feet of which can be used to store 
grain, and a space of 25x42 feet for stable. A good idea of the interior 
construction may be obtained from the illustrated plan of the base- 
ment. 



24 



TUE FARM. 




APPEARANCE AFTER COMPLETION. 



Hanging Bai'n Doors on Rollers. — The great convenience of sliding 
or rolling doors on the farm oiitbuildings is well known, and as every 
farmer with a little ingenuity can construct them himself, there is no reason 
why they should not be generally adopted. Our illustration. Fig. 1, repre- 
sents the shding doors, completed, as applied to the barn; Fig. 2, the man- 
ner of applying the rollers to the doors and track. The rollers, track and 
other trimmings may be obtained at any hardware store. The track is first 

securely fastened to the edge 
of an inch or two-inch board, 
about four or five inches wide. 
This is then firmly nailed or 
spiked to the building, parallel 
to and even with the top of the 
doorway, and should extend 
the width of the door on each 
side. In order that the doors 
may run easily, the track 
should be laid as level as 
possible, and upon one board. 
The manner of fastening the 
rollers of the doors is clearly 
shown in the engraving Fig. 2. The doors are placed upon the tracks at the 
ends of the latter, and are prevented from running ofl" by placing a block at 
the end of the track or upon the side of the door. The track should be pro- 
tected from the weather by some kind of covering. Two narrow boards 
nailed together similar to an eaves-trough, and fastened to the building 
above the track and rollers, form the best kind of protection from snow or 
rain. 

Motlel Carriage-House and Stable. ^Our engraving of the elevation, 
on the following page, shows 
doors of the rectangular, car- 
riage-house portion of the 
building; also door to hay- 
loft. The carriage-house 
doors are folding, and open 
outward, as they can be made 
closer when hung on hinges 
than when hung on rollers; 
and as it is desirable that all 
doors and windows should 
be as close as practicable, 
that they may not affect the 
ventilation, the ingress of which is provided for by a subterraneous air duct, 
seen at A, in the ground plan. 

The posts are sixteen feet in length; the ceiling of the stable is nine feet 
in the clear, with storage in the loft for twelve tons of hay. 

The oat bin is a cylinder of one hiindred bushels capacity, around which 
circular stairs are built. Its location could not be more convenient, as six 
horses can be fed grain with walking but fourteen feet, on account of the six 
stalls being with the head end around a semicircle of sixteen feet diameter. 
This circular area is open to the cupola, and being supplied with air through 
the floor, under the stairs, and the animals all breathing into a common cen- 



FIG. 2. 



MANNER OF APPLYING THE ROLLERS. 



RURAL ARCTTITECTURS. 



25 



ter directly under the egress, the air is constantly changed without a per- 
ceptible current, and it is nearly at the temperature of the earth below the 
frost and solar influence; no doors nor windows need be opened. 

By reference to our illustration of the ground plan, it will be seen that 
the stall partitions are radial. The stalls are five feet in width in front, and 
eleven feet at the rear end. The stalls V and VI are arranged with strong 
gates hung to the wall of the building, in a line witli the stall partitions, 
which, when closed, as seen in stall VI, form spacious, convenient box stalls. 
There is no partition between the carriage-house, VII, and the stable por- 




MODEL CARRIAGE-HOUSE AND STABLE.— ELEVATION. 



tion of the building, except that formed by the stall partitions and the gates 
closed, as seen in stall VI, 

The ventilation is so effectual that the air of the stable does not effect the 
carriage-house; and it being arranged with three drive doors, three pairs of 
horses to carriages may all be driven into the carriage-house at once, and 
the doors closed behind them, and the horses taken to their respective 
stalls. There are two harness closets, H, H. 

The rectangular figures in each stable floor, are cast-iron drip grates, 
each covering a sink, or pit, into which the urine falls. These are all con- 
nected by pipes, which all connect with a main inner conduit, laid in the 



26 



"phS farm. 



ground by way of the stable door. This conduit discharges into the manure 
house. The quadrant-shaped figures at the head of the stalls, are hinged 
iron mangers, which may be turned into the feeding passages for conven- 
ience in feeding, and the man- 
gers may be unhinged and 
removed from the building 
when cleansed. 

The circular figure in the 
line of the stall partitions, is 
the base of a sheet-iron hay 
tube, which is supported at 
the height of the manger, and 
extends to the upper surface 
of the loft floor, where it is 
supplied with hay. These 
tubes have an opening to each 
stall, so that one tube sup' 
pHes two horses, the tube be 
ing covered at the top, and 
close, except the feeding open- 
ings, and the lattice bottom to 
them protects the hay from air 
and dust, and is the most per- 
fect and durable hay-feeding 
arrangement yet discovered. 

The object of the lattice bot- 
tom to the hay tubes, is to 
preserve the hay seed which 
sheds. It falls into a drawer for the purpose, and the seed thus saved is of 
excellent quahty, and the qiaantity thus collected well remunerates for the 
cost of the arrangement. The cupola is octangiilar, and has four openings, 
with stationary blinds, and four with glazed sash, which thoroughly light the 
hay-loft and feeding passage. 

The building is perfectly lighted and ventilated, and exhibits a pretty 
elevation from any point of vi*w. 




MODEL CARRIAGE-HOUSE AND STABLE.— 
GROUND PLAN. 



FENCES AND GATES. 



Farm Fences. — lu tho following list of farm fences we have endeavored 
to illustrate and describe only those that are of practical value and in actual 
use by many farmers. They illustrate the various modes of arranging rails 
for the turning of stock and indicating the boundary line of farms. In many 
sections of the country the common crooked, zig-zag (sometimes called the 
Virginia or worm) rail fence is extensively used, and, in consequence of the 
scarcity of the desired material, cannot be immediately replaced by the im- 
proved board, post and rail, iron or stone fence. As commonly constructed, 
with wide-spreading stakes at each corner, it occupies a strip of ground 
nearly a rod in Avidth, which is far Avorse than useless, affording a harboring 
place for noxious weeds, 
etc. 

Fig. 1 represents a section 
of a straight rail fence. The 
stakes are first driven in 
the soil from four to six 
inches asunder, stifficient to 
admit of a rail of medium 
size; a stone or block of 
wood a few inches in height 
is placed between the 
stakes, upon Avhich are 
properly placed tAvo or three 
rails; a piece of annealed Avire is then placed around both stakes, the ends 
being Avell twisted together, upon Avhich are placed rails until Avithin a few 
inches of the top, Avhen another bit of Avire, a Avooden pin, or a Avooden cap, 
as most convenient, is attached. 

In building this class of fence, it will be necessary to cut aAvay Avith an axe 
a portion of each end of many rails, that they may fit closely AA'ithin the stakes. 
In this, as Avell as other rail fences, the largest and heaviest rails should be 
reserved for the top, rendering their removal by unruly stock and high 
Avinds less easy. Keep the crooked ones in a panel by themselves, and if 
they are very crooked it is policy to use them for stakes, or consign them to 
the flames; for to have a fence to please and not to provoke the intrusion of 
stock, use none but straight rails. 

When economy of rails is desired, immediately after setting the stakes 
cast up a ridge of earth by ploAving tAvo furroAVS on each side, thi'owing up 
the second furrow with a shovel, making a ridge a foot or more in height, 
and not less than a foot in bi-eadth at the top; proceed as above in the con- 
struction of the fence; sow grass seed upon the ridge. This plan saves two 
rails to a panel, renders the stakes more firm and less liable to heave by the 
action of the frost, and um'uly cattle do net have the same advantage in 
attemipting to get through or over it. In situations not liable to the preva- 
lence of high winds, this is the fence that should be used, occupying less 




FARM fe:?ces. 



THE FARM. 



ground than many other kinds; and, when properly constructed, it is a 

substantial and neat fence. 

Fig. 2, though in appearance somewhat resembling the previous one, is 

more expensive, and is designed 
especially for the use of poles or 
slender rails that it would be im- 



possible to properly arrange in a 
fence by any other plan. To the 
stakes are nailed cleats, as shown, 
from four to seven at every set of 
stakes. Size of rails and purpose 
of fence Avill decide this point. A 
lidge of earth can be thrown up 
as in the previous plan, with a 
corresponding economy of timber. 
Fig. 3 exhibits a mode of stak- 
ing a zig-zag fence. After the 
foundation has been laid, the 
stakes should be driven; holes 
should be made Avith a crowbar to 
One man, standing on a box or bench, 
common wooden beetle, Avhile an 










FAKM FENCES. — FIG. 2. 



the depth of twenty inches at least. 

drives them with a sledge-hammer or 

assistant keeps them upright. Make all the holes before you commence 

driving the stakes, which should be all sharpened, and the top end reduced 

to a size admitting the caps to pass over them readily before they are brought 

to the field. 

When the fence is made four or more rails high (the size of rails, etc., will 
govern), the caps are put ui3on, and the fence finished by the addition of two 
or three more rails. 

In localities where caps are expensive or difficult to obtain, good annealed 
wire, size 10, will answer all purposes. It should be drawn tightly up 
around the stakes; it will bury into them, and the weight of the rails above 
the wires Anil rest upon the stakes, having a tendency to keep them in the 
ground when acted upon l)y the frost. 

The most expeditious manner in which to shai'peu stakes is to have a 
large, flat block of wood for the stake to stand on, which is held upright with 
one hand and sharpened Avith an axe held in the other; a holloAV cut in the 
upper surface of the block Avill consider- 
ably expedite the operation. Hop poles, 
stakes for grape-vines, etc., are best 
sharpened in the above manner. 

In Fig. 4 is shoAvn the best plan known 
for staking the common rail fence. It 
dispenses with stakes at the corners, and 
in consequence of their central position, 
they are not liable to be broken or 
loosened Avhile plowing; nor does the 
fence occupy as much land as by the old 
mode. In conseqiience of the central 
point at Avhich the stakes cross the upper 

rail of fence, it is required to sustaha the weight of the stakes and riders; 
therefore, this part should be made strong and durable, of well-seasoned 
material. 







FABM FENCES. — FIG. 3. 



FENCES AND GATES. 



29 




FARM FENCES. 




Fig. 5 represents a plan of bracing a rail fence, whether it be staked aad 
ridered, staked and capped, locked and ridered, staked and wired, or Avired 
and pinned, all of which kinds of fence are easily blown down by a heavy 
wind, rails broken, stock let into fields of valuable grain, time spent, and 
patience exhausted in rebiiildiug 
them. The manner of using the 
arrangement is clearly shown in the 
figure. It consists in placing on the 
inside leeward corner a piece of rail, 
one end resting upon the ground, the 
other placed underneath the third 
rail fi'om the top. A fence braced as 

shown has stood five vears without repairing, while a locked, staked and 
ridered fence by the side of it has been prostrated three times, although in a 
less exposed situation, thus demonstrating the value of this attachment when 

used in connection with the 
common rail fence. 

Straiglit Rail Fence. — 

We present a section of 
straight rail fence, which 
will be found easy and cheap 
to construct, and economical 
in saving timber and occupy- 
ing space on the land. 

In constructing this fence 
good posts should be firmly 
set at such distances apart as 
will admit of the rails reach- 
ing from the center of one post to the center of the other. If necessary, 
straighten the face of the posts Avith an axe, and hew down the ends of the 
rails to a uniform thickness. These rails are fastened to the posts by means 
of a stake, which rests on a 
stone or block of wood, and 
is firmly wired at the top 
and bottom to the post. In 
constructing the fence it is 
better to Avire the bottom of 
the stake first— at the proper 
distance— and the top rather 
loosely, so as to admit the 
rails easily. When the rails 
are laid up draw the top 
wire tight, and if proper care 
has been taken in straight- 
ening the face of the post, 
hewing the ends of the rails, 
etc., iftie work Avill bind to- 
gether very tightly. 

The fence will last as long as the posts; it is strong, requires 
no nails, nor any more wire than to stake an ordinary crooked fence, 
and it takes but little over half the posts necessary for an ordinary board 
fence. 



*Ck**'^%>i^Sii^^^'^ 



FABM FENCES.— FIG. 5. 




SECTION OF STRAIGHT RAIL FENCE. 



THE FAliM. 



Durable Fence Posts._We give hercAvith a drawing and description of 
a fence post which we think will last one's life-time. The bottom of the post 
is formed of a stone — some kind that will drill easily — about eight inches 

thick and twenty long. In 
this stone two holes are 
drilled, one an inch and a 
quarter in diameter and three 
inches deep, and the other, 
half an inch in diameter and 
two inches deep; the holes 
should be about one foot 
apart. Bed the stone in the 
ground nearly level with the 
surface, Avith the small hole 
on the inside of the fence. 
Next take a scantling four 
inches square and three feet 
long, and put a bar of inch 
and a quarter iron into one 
end, lengthwise, about six 
inches. The end of the bar 
should project four or five 
inches. Place this into the 
largest hole in the stone, hold 
it pliimb, turn in melted 
brimstone, and you have a 
post. Bend the end of a rod 
of half inch iron, and fasten 
in the other hole in the same 
DtTRABLE FENCE POSTS. way; the other end should 

be flattened and attached to 
the scantling with a stout screw. The bar should set tight in the post, and 
about one inch space for air should be left between the scantling and stone. 




Always-Ready Gate- 
gate — a small gate for a 
barnyard or elsewhere, 
where a passageway is much 
used. It is very convenient. 
This gate savings in a V- 
shaped inclosure, or in two 
sides of a triangle. Having 
the top hinge the longest 
and the post plumb, the 
gate, at rest, always hangs 
in the center, and rightly 
constructed will alAvays 
leave a passageway of two 
feet. Cattle cannot get 
through it, nor do we think 
sheep will pass it. It is 



-We give an illustrated plan of an always-ready 




ALWAYS-READY GATE. 



no watching 
ways. 



always shut and always open. It requires 



to keep it closed, and will be found conveniGnt in many 



'FENCJ<:s AND (^ATJ^S. 



Si 



A Good Farm Crate. — We present herewith an engraving of a good 
and serviceable farm gate, which may be easily and cheaply constructed as 
follows: 

Four posts are set firmly in line, so that the front will be true. Measure 
fourteen feet, on line with those already set, and set the post the gate shuts 
against. Then place the sill for the gate to run on, fourteen or sixteen feet 
long, put down solid. The sill for the gate to run back on can be made of any 
light material that will sustain the weight of the gate. The sill should have 
about one inch down grade toward the shutting post, and be spiked fast to 



S 




A GOOD FAKM GATE. 

the posts. The gate is made of any width lumber, and long enough to lap 
four inches on the shutting posts, and about two feet on the groove post, to 
keep it shady. At the bottom, the gate must have two boards to support the 
bolts that the rollers turn on. These rollers should be six inches in diameter, 
an inch thick, to run on half-round iron, placed at a proper distance from the 
bottom board of the fence, so as to let the gate pass without rubbing. The 
iron rod should have holes punched so as to let twelve-penny nails through 
to nail to the sill, about two feet apart. Nail down the rod and it is ready 
for the gate. The gate is put together with 
.sixteen two and one-half inch bolts and 
eight three and one-half inch bolts; the 
three and one-half inch bolts go through 
three boards at the bottom. The rollers 
(as per drawing) go between the bottom 
boards close under the brace, so as to get 
the bearing; the bolts should fit the rollers 
as tight as possible. These rollers in their 
place, put up the gate on the rod, and run 
it back on the fence; mark the four posts 
one inch above the top of the gate; saw 

them off square, in line; place on top of the posts a joist twelve inches wide, 
two inches thick; let it project over in front of the gate far enough to clear it; 
now nail a six-mch strip on the edge of the joist, so that the top edge will be 
even with the top side of the joist; the four inches projecting down will serve 
as a groove for the gate to run in and keep it in its place; now spike the joist 
to the top of the post firmly; let the gate lap on the shutting.post about four 
inches on half the posts; then nail the ends of the boards to the post occupy- 
ing the other half, so that the gate will shut against the butts, which will 
help sustain the post; now nail a board solid in line with the butts, and thick 




A CHEAP GATE. 



M 



THE FAR. 



enough to project a quarter to a half inch from the gate; nail a stout board 
on the previous one, and let it project over about three inches toward the 
gate, and in line with the post, so as to make a groove for the gate to 
stand in. If it is properly shaped the gate will jam in it and remain solid 
until it is removed back. 



A Clieap Gate. 




This gate, illustrated on preceding page, is designed 
merely for farm lase. Wood and metal or wire 
are combined in a novel manner in its con- 
struction. It may be cheaply made by un- 
skilled labor, and combines lightness with 
durability. The gate is composed of two 
wooden uprights, one at the hinge end and 
the other at the free end, two horizontal 
rails and an oblique brace connecting the 
rods. An iron brace connects the upper end 
of the inner upright, and is provided with 
an eye which receives the pintle of upper 
liinge. Wires are stretched between the up- 
rights, forming a complete panel. This gate 
is very light, and at the same time simple 
I and strong. 



FANCY GATES. — FIG. 1. 



Some Fancy Gates.— For the benefit of 
such readers as may be contemplating the 
luxury of a new front yard or garden fence, 
or, in fact, an ornamental fence of any de- 
scription, we present on this and the following page four neat and orna- 
mental designs of cheap, fancy framed gates, which any carpenter can make, 
and which may be used approi^riately with almost any style of picket or even 
with iron fences. These gates arc usually made three feet six or eight inches 
wide. The space between the posts for an 
ordinary door yard gate should be three 
feet ten inches. That is, however, a matter 
to be decided by convenience, and the use to 
which it is to be put. A wide gate is more 
convenient than a narrow one, especially 
where baby carriages and wheelbarrows are 
much used, and the gate is employed as a 
common and general entrance and exit by 
the family for all purposes. 

To Preser^-e Fence Posts. — A cor- 
respondent at Benton Harbor, Mich., sends 
us the following statement by Parker Earle 
(a Avidely known horticulturist), in the 
Chicago Times, and requests our oi^inion of 

his mode for preserving fence posts. In answer, it may be stated that no 
single experiment, or no single series of expei'iments under like circum- 
stances, can be adopted as a rule for unlike conditions. For general appli- 
cation, we would recommend first impregnating the whole of the post Avith 
crude petroleum as a general jireservative, and when dry apply hot tar to 
the portion going into the ground, but none above. The petroleum will 
penetrate the pores, and the tar coating will hold it there. The following is 




FANCY GATES. — FIG. 2. 



FENCES AND GATES. 




FANCY GATES 



Mr. Earle's statement: "In building a fence around our young orchard, 
several years ago, we tried many plans for preserving the posts. Having 
occasion to remove the fence this winter, we noted the condition of the posts 
as follows: Those set with no preparation 
were decayed an inch or more in thickness; 
those coated with a thick wash of lime were 
better preserved, but were quite seriously 
attacked by worms; those posts coated with 
hot tar were perfectly sound as when first put 
into the ground; those painted with petroleum 
and kerosene were equally sound, and as 
good as new. In future Ave shall treat all 
posts in the following manner before setting: 
Let the posts get thoroughly dry, and then, 
with a pan of cheap kerosene and a white- 
wash brush, give the lower third of the post, 
the part to go into the ground, two or three 
good apphcations of the oil, letting it soak in 
well each time. Posts so treated will not be 
troubled by worms or insects of any kind, 

but will resist decay to a remarkable degree. This we find to be the simplest, 
sasiest, cheapest, and best method of preservation." — Country Gentleman. 

Easy Method of Taking Up Posts—Wishing to take up fence posts, 
which were sound, and standing solid in 
heavy clay soil baked hard by drouth, a cor- 
respondent made his head save his muscle: 
"I found that by pouring a pail of water 
around the post it may be very readily 
loosened by the hand. Then by hooking a 
chain about it loosely, slipping the noose 
down as far as possible below the surface of 
the ground, and hooking the other end of 
the chain around a piece of light scantling, 
near the center, to act as a lever, the post 
may be lifted out of its bed very easily." 

A Good Feiice.—Eaise black walnut 
posts on the lot where they are wanted. If 
they grow fast they will do in from five to 
seven years. Use the barb wire. Black walnut injures crops less than 
almost any other tree. •No stock will gnaw or hurt it. The roots run straight 
down, so you can plow against the trunk. It grows straight and tall, and has 
but few limbs. The working of the tree will not break the wire. Black wal- 
nut will pay all expenses in a few years in fruit. 

Post and Rail Fences. — We give herewith plain directions, with appro- 
priate sketches, which we think will enable any ordinarily skillful farm-hand 
to make the simple machinery necessary for boring the holes in the posts, 
mortising them out, pointing the rails, digging the holes in the earth, and 
putting up a good and substantial rail fence. The posts are 7 1-2 feet long 
for a six-rail fence, which is the best and most generally used, and 3 to 4 
inches thick by 7 to 8 inches wide. These posts are hewn out. The holes in 
the posts are oblong (up and down the post), and in size are 2 1-2x6 inches, 




FANCY GATES. — FIG. 4. 



34 



THE FARM, 



The rails are 9 1-2 feet long, and 5 to 6 inches wide by 2 to 3 inches thick on 
the bark edge, and a quarter to a half inch thick on the othpr edge. 

In building the fence the bark edge is placed doum, as the thin edge 
sheds rain or snow more readily, which prevents rotting so rapidly. The 
rails lap in the holes about five or six inches, as shown in the section, Fig. 4, 

In making the posts the 
timber is cut into proper 
lengths, and then split in 
proper size and hewn, leav- 
ing the ground end for two 
feet rough and unhewn, 
giving a stout base. This 
part of the Avork is done in 
the forest, after which they 
are hauled home, and put 
in piles ready for boring. 
The mode of making the 
oblong holes in the post is 
shown in the cut (Fig. 1), 
a representing the post, 
thin edge up. Two holes 
are bored with a two-and- 
a-quarter-inch auger at the 
points shown by the holes 
in the post on the trestle at 
a. The auger holes are six 
inches apart/ro?a outside to 
outside. The trestle frame 
is made of stout timber and 
planks, as shown in the fig- 
ure. The planks are put 
on the benches edgewise, 
and fastened with stout 
pins. A plank is placed 
from one bench to the 
other for the post to rest 
on, and these benches are 
eleven and a half feet 
apart. In the two planks 
it will be seen that notches 
are ^wed at points to cor- 
respond with the holes to 
be made by the auger. 
These notched planks are 
placed thirteen or fourteen 
inches iipart, to enable the round or square wheel (see Figs. 1 and 5) to run 
easily in between them. The post is held on the plank firmly by stout 
wooden pins and wedges. The bottom hole in the post is made two inches 
above the ground level. The next hole is three inches from the top of the 
bottom hole; the next four inches above that; the next is five above that; 
and the top hole is six inches above the one below it. In boring the holes 
the auger, which is firmly fastened in the wheel, must be moved (wheel and 
all, of course) into the proper notches, and in this way every post is bored 




FE-S^C'ES AN^D GATES. 



35 



alike, and all the holes in tiie post are the proper distance apart. After 
your posts are bored, the next step is to have a narrow-blade axe, with a 
short handle, as shown at e. Fig. 2 (a common axe, would do, however), 
and with this mortise out the holes, which is done by laying the post flat- 
wise on the ground, or on a 
stout, low trestle, similar to 
the " pointer " shown at Fig. 3. 
When one side is mortised half 
out, turn the post and finish. 
A good hand will bore and 
mortise fifteen posts a day with 
these tools. The i-ails for this 
kind of a fence are split out in 
the woods, 9 1-2 feet long, all 
of the same length. A good 
hand can cut down the tim- 
ber and split out one hundred 
of them in a day, in fair timber. 
They are hauled home gener- 
ally before being pointed. The 
epds of the rails should fill the 
holes as nearly as possible, so 
as to exclude moisture, the 
tighter the better. Pointing 
the rails is simple work. Two 
short-legged, stout trestles of 
any rough logs are placed 
about eight feet apart, as 
shown at Fig. 3, in each of 
which two large wooden pegs are driven to receive the rail, and between 
these pegs the rail is placed, thin edge up, and fastened in between the pegs 
Avith wedges of wood. They are now sharpened off to about an inch thick 
for six to eight inches, the corners slightly nipped, and the work is done. A 
man will point over two hundred in a day. 

To make holes in the earth, a digger (see Fig. 2) is used. It is about ten 

inches long by five wide, 
made perfectly straight, 
and to weigh, handle and 
all, about twelve pounds. 
It is made of good iron, 
laid with the best steel. 
Any blacksmith can make 
one. They cost about $1.50, 
without handle. The 
handle should be six feet 
long, and heavy. A club at 
one end would do for a ram- 
mer to run the dirt in the holes. In making the fence, set the first post 
firmly, and slip in one end of the rails, as shown at a, in Fig. 4. After the 
next hole is dug set the next post in, and before you put in the dirt place the 
other end of the rails in on both sides, and drive; then fill up and ram 
firmly, and so on to the end. Drive the rails Avith a wooden maul. Never 
use an axe. When you come to a corner, yon must have a large post with 




FIG. 2.— SHOVEL, AXE AND DIGGER. 




TRESTLE FOR POINTING THE RAILS. 



S6 



THE FARM. 



holes in the sides— the other holes only half 




way through the post — to re- 
ceive the turn raila. In dig- 
ging the holes, a little prac- 
tice will enable you to throw 
Gilt over half of the dirt with 
the digger (see Fig. 2), es- 
pecially if the earth is tena- 
cious. After that a long- 
handled, small scoop shovel, 
as shown at d, Fig. 2, will be 
found serviceable. 

auger is about 3 1-2 feet long, 



FIG. 4. — SECTION OF THE SIX KAIL FENCE. 

We neglected to say that the handle to the 
and can be, as it usually is, fas- 
tened on by a blacksmith. The 
square wheel shown in Fig. 5 is 
easily made, and is about 5 feet 
in diameter. The trestle (Fig. 
1) is 3 1-2 feet high. The auger 
is put in the wheel and hung 
on the trestle precisely Hke an 
ordinary grindstone. As to the 
best materials for this fence, 
black locust is the best for 
posts, mulberry next, then 
wliite oak. For rails, white 
oak, ash, walnut, and cotton- 
wood, in the order named. 



Fence foi' Marsli or Soft 
Soil. — T h e improvement we 
herewith illustrate is designed 
for braciug the common board 
fences built across low, marshy 
ground, that is overflowed at 
every fall of rain. The work, or face side, of the fence is supposed to (and 

should) front up-stream; in 




FIG. 5. — AUGER W^HEEL. 




FENCE FOE MARSH OR SOFT SOIL. 



the rear, and four feet from 
each post, is firmly driven 
into the ground a stake (K), 
left projecting one foot above 
the surface. This stake is 
connected Avith the. fence- 
post by strip (B), as indi- 
cated. The strength of the 
fence to resist the force of 
rushing water that may 
come in contact with it is in- 
creased tenfold. Where high 
winds are prevalent, fences 
may be braced in this way 
upon the leeward side. 



FIELD CROPS. 



"Wlieat Shoclcs.— The illustrations portray the various methods prac- 
ticed for securing wheat, rye, oats, etc., iu shocks, in which position they 
should be arranged. Wheat should be cut from five to ten days before 
maturity— that is, when about one-third of the chaflf is yet green, or while 
many of the berries can be mashed between the thumb and finger. The 
points gained thereby are: By thus early reaping the grain is not as liable to 
be prostrated by rain or high winds, and is not as hable to shell during the 
process of gathering. The grain secured by this process, and at the time 
indicated, is heavier, and 
the flour is better. 

Fig. 1 delineates a large, 
oblong shock which is made 
by placing ten sheaves in a 
double row, the bottom of 
each pair being a foot asun- 
der, set bracing and meeting 
at Hie top, the whole covered 
by two sheaves, whose ends, 
each side of band, are so 
spread that when in position 
they will afford a more 
secure protection from rain, 
and render the liability to 
derangement in high winds 
much less. 

In Fig. 2 is shown a very 
good plan for securing a 
dozen or more sheaves in a round shock, 
right angles above the center of the shock. 

Fig. 3 illustrates another mode of capping a round shock. But six 
sheaves should be placed upright in each shock, unless the straw be of extra 
length, as in the case of rye. Bind the caps securely near the butts, break- 
mg down all around before placing iu proper position. The latter is a mode 
seldom practiced, yet highly recommended by many farmers. Should the 
sheaves' be damp or contain slowly drying weeds, shock in the manner shown 
in Fig. 1, which exposes a greater area of each sheaf to the combined in- 
fluence of sun and air than by any other known process. 

Harvesting AVlieat. — Wheat, when cut before the grain has passed 
from the milk to the dough state, will shrivel and give small measure and 
light weight. The straw will be more valuable for fodder, however, than if 
harvested later. On the other hand, if left to become over-ripe, the grains 
grow harsh and rough, and the bran will be so thick and brittle that no after 
manipulation of the kernels will bring the wheat in condition to make the best 
quality of fioiir without carrying a large proportion of flour off with the bran. 




WHEAT SHOCKS. — FIG. 1. 



Two caps are used, crossing at 



3S 



THE FARM. 



The cultivator's safety lies, therefore, between the extremes of early and 
late cutting. In a word, harvest the crop when the grain has passed from 
the milky stage to a doughy one. If the wheat be cut when the grain reaches 
the dough state, the bran will be thin and elastic, and can be separated more 



A^ 




HEAT SHOCKS. — FIG. 2, 



readily from the flour than 
when dead i-ipe. In addition 
to the flour being finer, it will 
also be increased in quantity 
in consequence of the bran 
being lighter than when ripe. 
A saving of w^heat is likewise 
gained, which otherwise 
would be lost by shelling in 
the field. 

The novice can ascertain 
the exact time when wheat 
and other small grain ought 
to be cut by opening heads 
in different portions of the 
field, and examining the ker- 
nels carefully. The straw 
near the ground Avill also 
proclaim the time for harvest 
by its yellow hue. 

Wheat cut in the dough 
state ought not to be dried 
suddenly. It may be bound 

and stacked at once, or, if there is only a small quantity, drawn to the barn. 

Some farmers put it into small stacks. If stacked so that the Avind and sun 

will not diy up all the juices in the plant, enough of these will be slowly con- 
centrated in the seed to accomplish the maturity of the grain in perfection. 

If by rapid I'ipening in the sun the 

kernels are shrivelled, more bran is 

formed in proportion to the flour. 
A large class of farmers practice 

threshing from the shock and hauling 

grain direct to market. The advan- 
tages of this plan vary with the season. 

When the wheat has been bleached 

out by hot suns and repeated rains, it 

should be stacked and go through the 

"sweat." During this process the 

straw and grain become damp and 

heat is evolved. At such times the 

grain cannot readily be threshed, 

therefore it is not advisable to attemj^t 

it until both straw and grain are dry. 

Then it ydW be found that the berry 

has been restored to color and exhibits a plump appearance, having absorbed 

nutritive matter from the stalk. The grain has not only undergone a change 

for the better, but the straw is also improved in quality. 

It is suggested that farmers take time to look about for extra fine heads 

of wheat for future seed. It will also be wise to carefully note the results of 




WHEAT SHOCKS. — FIG. 3. 



FIELD CHOPS. 



the several varieties grown, with a view to compariug their respective merits, 
aud selecting for another year's crop those sorts which promise best returns. 
When fertilizers have been used, it will also be well to mark the results. It 
is only by a careful comparison of diiferent plants under different treatments 
that a farmer surely arrives at conclusions which best suit the special require- 
ments of his land and his location. 

How to Stack Strav*'. — We give an illustration showing hoAV straw can 
be stacked so that it will be preserved from spoiling, and at the same time 
answer for a shelter to protect stock from the storms. The pen should be 
two or three logs high (or higher, if the logs are small), and large enough to 
corres^jond Avith the quantity of straw. Then set fence rails or poles all 
around inside of the pen, as represented. It can be biiilt at the tail end of 
the threshing machine, so 
that the straw can fall in it. 
It will require less hands to 
stack. 

D r a i li i n g W heat 

Fields—If no other method 
has been devised for drain- 
ing wheat fields, which are 
sometimes too wet, it will 
pay to plow furroAvs from 
the lowest spot to some 
lower point outside. Every 
experienced wheat grower 
knows that if water is al- 
lowed to stand upon the 
ground late in the fall, the 
crop will not only be direct- 
ly injured thereby, \>\\i will 
also be liable to be severely 
damaged by "winter kill- 
ing," and it should be the 
aim to prevent, as far as 
possible, both of these evils. 

A heavy rain will do little damage to a' wheat field if provision is made for 
the prompt removal of the surplus water, while a moderate rainfall upon 
undrained land which is already too wet will cause the destruction of many 
of the plants, and largely reduce the possible yield of the crop. While thor- 
ough drainage is much better than any makeshift which can be invented, it 
is much better to adopt the very imperfect plan recommended above than it 
is to make no provision for the protection of the crop from injury by an ex- 
cess of moisture in the soil. 

"Weevil in AVlieat. — A correspondent of an agricultural paper says: 
"Some years ago, hearing complaint of weevil in wheat about the close of 
harvest, when I was ricking my wheat, I got fi-esh slaked lime and threw 
over the rick in building it — laying two courses of sheaves, then lime suffi- 
cient to whiten the stack. A neighbor who threshed his wheat from the 
shock came to me a few days after, and said he should lose his wheat, for it 
was alive with weevil. I told him to throw lime over it, and shovel it through 
his wheat, which he did. Tavo davs later there was not a weevil seen in it," 




HOW TO STACK STRAW. 



40 



THE FARM. 




Wlieat Ma,xinis in Small Conipa-ss. — The fullowiug iuformation about 
wheat growing has been condensed: 1. The best soil for wheat is rich clay- 
loam; 2. "VVTieat likes a good, 
deep, soft bed; 3. Clover 
turned under makes just 
such a bed; 4. The best seed 
is oily, heavy, plump, and 
clean; 5. About two inches 
is the best depth for sowing 
the seed; 6. The drill puts 
in the seed better and 
cheaper than broadcasting; 
7. From the middle of Sep- 
tember to the last of Octo- 
ber is the best time for sow- 
ing; 8. Drilled, one bushel 
of seed per acre; if sown 
broadcast, two bushels per 
acre; 9. One heavy rolling 
after sowing does much 
good; 10. For flour, cut 
when the grain begins to 
harden; for seed, not until 
""^G 1 "' ^^ ^^^ hardened. 

All Oliio Corn Crib— 
We give an illustration (Fig. 1) of a very convenient and substantial double 
corn crib, with a wagon shed between. Such a crib can be built any size, 
and filled with grain, without the least sign of weakness. One is a brace for 
the other, and the more grain you have in it the firmer it will be. It is use- 
less to explain how the tim- 
bers should be put together^ 
and whore every door should 
be cut oiit, when one glance 
at the illustration will an- 
swer. Fig. 2 represents the 
double doors made to corre- 
spond with the entrance of 
the shed. The doors, when 
shut, are fastened to a piece 
of scantling, standing per- 
pendicular — one entering 
the beam, the other enter- 
ing a block put in the 
ground. The foundation 
can be of wood or stone, as 
suits best. This is what wo 
call the "Ohio Dutch Yan- 
kee com crib." 

Hilling Injurious to 
Com — Careful experi- 
ments have proved that corn which is hilled will blow down more readily 
than that which has level culture. This can be accounted for by the fact 




FIG. 2. 



FIELD CROPS. 



il 



that com roots run very near the surface, and when hills are made they are 
confined to the small space covered by the hill; while in level culture the 
roots run from one row to the other, thus enabling the corn to stand strong, 
as nature intended, and in no way liable to be blown down, except by winds 
of unusual violence. 

A Convenient Corn Crib. — We illustrate a very convenient style of com 
crib, which, while costing but a mere trifle more than an ordinary crib, pos- 
sesses some of the main advantages of a corn house; namely, a space pro- 
tected from the weather sufficient to accommodate a team with a wagon load 
of com. At the proper season the grain may be shelled therein, and it is an 
excellent place to shelter a lumber wagon. The plan needs but little expla- 
nation. It is simply two cribs placed side by side, and facing each other. 
The cribs and space between them are covered by one roof. The cribs 
should be about four feet wide at the bottom, and grow broader as they rise, 
the taper being on the outside; the projecting roof throws the water clear of 




A CONVENIENT COKN CBIB. 

the crib. The height should be sufficient to allow easy shoveling of the 
com from the wagon into the top of the crib. If one wishes to make it rat- 
proof, it may be elevated on posts, capped with inverted tm pans; but in 
that case it would hardly do to store tools in it. Some would suggest a floor 
and doors, which can easily be added to the plan, if desired. The best ma- 
terial is sawed scantlings for a frame, and three or four-inch-wide strips for 
sidmg. The roof may be made of matched boards. In case it should be 
determined to floor and hang doors, it would be well to board up the inside 
of the crib with matched stuff to the height of the eaves. 

Seed Corn — No one will deny that great care should be observed in se- 
lecting seed corn to plant, and yet numbers of farmers never see their seed 
com until it is carried to the field at planting- time. We think the best plan 
is to place a barrel in a corner of the crib, and throw in it every large and 
vigorous ear. Shell off about two inches of the large ends, in order to get 
the largest and most prolific grains. This produces a large and healthy 
plant, that grows much faster than small ones do. Many farmers may think 
it quite a tedious job to select every ear of com planted in this way; but they 



42 



THE FARM, 



will not find it so after giving it a trial, and selecting as much as possible on 

rainy days. This plan, once 
adopted, will ever be adhered 
to afterward. Try it; you will 
not regret it, but find it re- 
munerative. 

Cheap Corn Cribs . — 

There are many farmers who 
follow a mixed husbandry, 
and Avho raise comparatively' 
small quantities of corn, who 
cannot aflford to pay much for 
structures used for this pur- 
pose. For such we herewith 
give directions, accompanied 
with drawings, showing how 
a cheap and yet suitable crib 
may be made. 

The elevation (Fig. 1) is 
an excellent crib. The sills 
are four by six inches, framed; 
if only a small crib is needed, it will only be necessary to bore two-inch 
holes at each corner, and one intei-mediate, and insert sharpened sticks 
three inches square, to which secure slats horizontally, thrce-qiaarters of an 




^^ 



COEN CRIBS 







CORN CRIBS. — no. 2. 



inch apart. As this structure has but one door, it is best to divide the room 
in two parts, the best or sound corn to be put in the near compartment, and 
the poor corn in front, where it may be first fed out. A still cheaper plan 




CORN CRIBS. — FIG. 



of construction is to use poles or small logs, secured together in the form 
shown in Fig. 2. This is an exceedingly cheap and expeditious manner of 
constructing a corn crib, If properly done, it will last for years, is easy of 



PtELD CHOPS. 48 

access, and, with a good cover, coru will keep iu it as well as in those more 
expensive. 

Fig. 3 gives a side view of a crib constructed of poles or logs, showing the 
manner of splicing at A, A, the logs midway between the supports. Pin or 
nail the logs at the point of joining. In this way log cribs several hundred 
feet iu length are often constructed. 

Tlie Enemies of Corn. — Its enemies in the field, the bin, and the mill 
are numerous. Among its bird foes the crow is most dreaded by the 
farmer. He is a bold, saucy fellow, well endowed with bird sense, and soon 
sees a scare-crow is a humbug. The common devices used for this pui-pose 
— an open newspaper, bright tin, a clapping wind-mill, an eftigy, etc., are 
effective only for a short time, when something new must be found. A prac- 
tical farmer suggests that early planting will circumvent him, since he is not 
particularly an early bird. Another claims that the use of a planter which 
covers the seed and presses down the earth upon it has been a perfect de- 
fense for him. He has seen twenty crows pulhng away after the corn had 
got above the ground, and found they liad nipped the tops off, yet could not 
get. the kernel up. 

Great damage is often done to the corn crop by a corn- worm (Heliothus 
Armiga), identical Avith the boll- worm, so injurious to the cotton crop. The 
parent of the worm is a moth of brownish-yellow color, with dark brown or 
black markings. The caterpillar is green with black stripes and dark spots, 
and is covered with hairs. WTien full grown it measures about one and one- 
half inches. It is extremely voracious, though not particularly dainty, since 
it eats whatever comes in its way. Peas, stringed beans, tomatoes, pump- 
kins, cotton or corn are all one to his greedy api^etite. The moth deposits its 
eggs upon the corn silk, and the young caterpillars soon wwk then- way 
down to the tender kernel. When the caterpillar attains its full si^e it 
descends into the soil a few inches and there weaves its cocoon. Two or 
more broods are produced each year. Birds and parasites destroy this- 
insect both as worm and moth. Men destroy it by means of torches, lampa 
and lanterns, sometimes arranged over dishes of oil or water, into which it 
falls and drowns. Plates of vinegar and molasses put among the corn will 
entrap many of them. 

Aphis Maidis, a little plant louse, infests corn and lives upon its juicea. 
The eggs, which are laid in the ground, hatch in May, when the lice gather 
iipon the roots, and here remain until the roots harden so that they are 
driven to the stem and tassels, where they are found in great numbers about 
July. Their presence can be easily detected by an anny of red ants dancing 
attendance upon them, since they wear two black honey-tubes standing up 
like horns on the upper and hinder part of the abdomen, which secrete a 
sacchaiine fluid, of which the ants are very fond. They have a curious 
history of reproduction. The female deposits her eggs in the ground and 
dies. The brood are Avingless females, and without the intervention of the 
male bring forth alive another female brood. 

These do likewise, and so continue for five or six or more generations. 
The last brood are both males and females. These pair again, and deposit 
their eggs, which remain over winter in the ground, and the next spring 
begin the same round over again. It is claimed that nothing but cropping 
against them is of any avail. 

The corn-stalk borer is a comparatively new enemy, or, at any rate, has 
been only lately described. The moth is of an ashy-gray color, and probable 



44 'I HE FARM. 

lays her eggs near the base of the leaf where the leaf is sheathed around th^ 
stalk. The worm is orange yellow, with rows of reddish warts, and a flat, 
black head, with which it bores its way into the stalk. It sheds its skin four 
times before it attains full growth. The cocoon is woven within the stalk, 
and the moth makes its exit through the holes bored by the worm. Three or 
more broods are produced each year. It hibernates in stalks and stubble. 
The stalks not eaten by stock should be burned early in February, and the 
stubble should be plowed up and burned, or plowed under very deeply. 

Cui-ing Corn Fodder. — Much com fodder is spoiled while being cured. 
A good way to prevent this is to set firmly in the ground a small stake or 
large-sized bean-pole, around which a few armfuls of corn is set, and bound 
securely near the top. This makes a firm center around which to build. 
Then set up more corn, placing it evenly all around, and leaning it no more 
than is necessary to have it stand. When enough is placed to make a large 
stock, all that can cure, draw a rope, with a slip noose in one end, around 
the stock as tight as convenient, using a step-ladder to stand upon if the corn 
is very tall. An assistant can now bind with a straw band or with selected 
stalks, after which the rope may be removed. If doing the work alone, the 
rope can be tied while the band is being put on. Corn fodder well put up in 
this way may be kept, if desired, in the field till winter. 

Saving Seed Corn. — To save seed com successfully in a cold climate, 
you should not keep it in a warm place, or especially Avhere it is warm but a 
part of the time, as there is danger that the changes of temperature may de- 
stroy the germinative power. Continued Avarmth is also conducive to de- 
composition, which will destroy the life of the seed. Corn and similar seeds 
are best kept in a dry, cool room, where the temi^erature is uniform. When 
your seed from the "small pile over the living-room" failed to germinate, 
the cause was probably due to both dampness and warmth, which incited 
incipient decay. Seeds differ greatly in the degree of cold they will endure 
■without losing vitality. Corn has germinated after having been subjected to 
the most intense cold of the polar regions, and an experiment is reported m 
which other seeds germinated after having been frozen into a cake of ice. 

Corn Culture. — "The suckers," says H. M. Engle, in a prize essay, 
"should, under all circumstances, be taken off before they appropriate too 
much substance which the main stalks should receive, but under no circum- 
stances allow suckers to tassel, for, whatever pains may be taken to bring or 
keep corn at its greatest perfection by selection of seed, the pollen from the 
sucker may undo what has been gained by years of careful selection, I 
would as soon think of breeding from a scrub male to a thoroughbred ani- 
mal as to have the pollen from suckers cast upon an excellent variety of 
com. It is also well known that the pollen from a neighboiing field is oft- 
times carried to an almost incredible distance, and consequently may cause 
more mixture than is desirable." 

Points on Corn. — Deep plowing among growing corn after the roots 
have met in the rows is disastrous; "root pruning" is a mistake; to break 
the roots checks the growth, and in hot, dry weather deep cultivation will 
surely cause the com to curl, showing injuring and suffering, while shallow 
working will keep it fresh and green. As soon as a crust is fomied on the 
soil, it should be broken up to admit both moisture and air, for the one dis- 
solves the fertilizing matter which is in the soil, and the latter effects its de- 



FIELD CHOPS. 4ii 

composition and renders it soluble. So that after a rain, which has crusted 
the surface, the cultivator should be started as soon as the soil is dry enough; 
this tends to hold the moisture and prevent speedy evaporation. 

Raising Ooocl Corn in a Dry Season. — " Some Yankee," says a prac- 
tical farmer, " will ask, ' How do you raise good com in a drouth ?' I'll tell. 
I plowed and rolled my ground, spread my manure on, and harrowed it in; 
put a handfiil of hen manure and fine bone composted in the hill; cultivated 
it fiat; did not hill any. When the drouth came, cultivated, but veiy shal- 
low; the result was a good ci'op. On another plot the manure was spread 
on the sod and tui-ned under without any fertilizer in the hill, and was al- 
most a failure. My neighbors report that they have very fau- corn on land 
that the manure was spread on after plowing and fertilizing in the hill." 

Plusking. — Some people who husk corn throw the shock upon the 
ground, spread it out, and go to work on their knees. They know no better. 
If they will make a frame four feet Avide and long enough to hold a shock 
after it is spread out, with a board in the middle running lengthways to sit 
on, they will iind they have done a sensible thing. The frame may be eigh- 
teen inches high, or any other height they may like better. 

Cabbages witli Corn. — A writer in the Fruit Recorder says that one of 
his neighbors planted some cabbage among his corn where the corn missed, 
and the butterflies did not find them. He has therefore come to the conclu- 
sion that if the cabbage patch were in the middle of the corn patch, the but- 
terflies would not find them, as they fly low and like plain sailing. 

Potato CiUttire. — Destroying the potato beetle, says the American (Jid- 
tivator, and its even more destructive larvae, has come to be the most im- 
portant point in the successful growing of j^otatoes. Paris green is the com- 
mon agent emi^ioyed, though London purple is cheaper, equally effective, 
and has the advantage, Avhen used with w^ater, of being soluble, while Paris 
green, under similar conditions, is insoluble. It does not follow, however, 
because these poisons will do the work, that every grower can make them 
equally effective. In their indiscriminate use the inexperienced cultivator 
is hable to do more harm than good. The young potato shoot is very tender, 
and either Paris green or London purple applied in too strong doses wiH 
bum the vines. If the vines be injured at this early stage of their growth 
from any cause, the resultant crop will be greatly diminished. 

For nearly all early planted potatoes, when the vine gi-ows slowly, hand 
picking to destroy the first crop of beetles is very important. It should be 
performed as soon as the shoots are up, and, if possible, before any eggs are 
laid. In a potato-growing section, where old beetles from last year's hatch 
appear by the thousands, this indeed involves considerable labor. In fact, 
in such a locality it is not easy to grow early potatoes on a large scale. 
From a few short rows in a garden we have picked up by count between 
eight hundred and nine hundred beetles on a warm, sunshiny half-day, just 
as the potatoes were coming up. The next day the process was repeated, 
Avith nearly half as many beetles secured, while more or less in number 
were gathered every subsequent day for a week. It was just at the time the 
beetles were coming out of the ground, and the garden potatoes being early 
planted, attracted all the beetles in the neighborhood. It is of little avail to 
attempt to poison these beetles in the spiing. Occasionally one will eat as 
expected, but the majority are too busy propagating and laying egga to 



46 77/ i^' rAtiU. 

attend to anything else. It is the fact that beetles are very numerous iu 
spring, together with the difficulty in destroying them by poison, which 
frightens so many from the business. The inexperienced grower is apt, as 
soon as he finds his vines infested, to prepare a dose of poison, making it of 
very great strength, so as to make certain of killing the enemy. In nine 
cases out of ten the tender vines are injured, and the beetles are seldom 
appreciably diminished in numbers. With close hand jjicking at first, and a 
reserving of the poison until the larvae make their appearance, the result is 
very difterent and much more satisfactory. 

The main crop of potatoes should be planted late— that is, if large quan- 
tities are to be grown. Planting a few in the garden or somewhere else, as 
a bait to draw the first beetles, greatly lessens the subsequent work. Even 
in the same field the potato beetle is more destructive on some varieties 
than on others. Those who have grown the Magnum Bonum say it is 
especially liable to attack. Grown alongside other varieties, the bugs sin- 
gled out this, while the others largely escaped. It has been siTggested that 
one or two rows of this kind be planted around the potato field as a protec- 
tion to the main crop. On the other hand, it is said the Early Gem is 
especially distasteful to the bugs. There is probably some difference in the 
comparative liability of different varieties to this insect attack. We have 
generally found, however, that tlie larger growing varieties and the strongest 
hills of the same variety are least injured. It is possible to plant on highly- 
manured ground, with seed so Aigorous that its rapid growth will largely 
reduce the cost of fighting the bugs. The female beetle instinctively chooses 
a vine that is a feeble grower on which to deposit her eggs. Where the vine 
is full of sap, either the eggs will not be laid or many of them will fail to 
hatch. We hope very much, from the results of recent experiments, iu dis- 
covering the true way to cut potato seed. If the proper cutting of potato 
seed will insure greater vigor or growth, many of the difiiculties in fighting 
the potato beetle \d\\ be overcome. 

It should not be forgotten that the potato grower has insect friends as 
well as enemies. All kinds of lady-bugs eat the eggs of the potato beetle. 
It is the abundance of these lady-bugs about old apple orchards that often 
makes i)otato gi'owing siiccessful near an orchard when the field crop Avill be 
entirely destroyed. There are several varieties of insects that prey on the 
potato larvae. Farmers who use no poison sometimes find dead potato bug 
larvje on their vines. These dead specimens should always be left undis- 
turbed, as in all probability they are filled Avith eggs of the parasite that has 
destroyed them, only needing opportunity to hatch and continue the good 
woi-k. On general principles, if any insect is found iu the potato field whoso 
habits are not known, it is best to leave it undisturbed, since it is quite 
probably a friend engaged in destroying the farmer's enemies. Entomolo- 
gists have discovered thirty or more insect enemies of the potato bug in its 
various stages of growth, and there are probably others not yet known. But 
for these friendly insects difficulties in growing potatoes Avould be much 
greater than those which now prevail. 

Pliospliate for Potatoes. — Wm, T. Woerner, of New Brunswick, N. J., 
writes: "In planting potatoes I have used no other manure than phosphate 
of some reliable brand, for the last ten years, and in that time I have not had 
a gi'ub-eaten potato where I put the phosphate. All my potatoes grow as 
smooth as a bottle, and of a large, salable size. I never use stable manure 
of any kind on potatoes now. I would not put it on if it was given to me, 



FIELD GROFS. 



il 



and I had to pay fifty dollars per ton for phosphate. My neighbors have 
tried it with a like result. It is a very cheap fertilizer; on good ground I 
only use about two bags per acre (400 lbs. ) , which is a good manuring on 
ordinary soil. I have raised four hundred bushels to the acre with nothing 
but phosphate, applied in the row." 

A Handy " Bug-Catclier."_Although it is now the custom of most of 
our farmers to rid theii- crops of that terrible pest, the potato bug, by Paris 
green poisoning, still we think the following illustrated sketch of a bug- 
catcher, sent by a gentleman who has used the contrivance with great suc- 
cess, will prove interesting and profitable to our readers. He says: " With 
the pan I use for catching Colorado beetles, any one can do as much work as 
three or four people collecting the pests, according to the ordinary method 




CONTRIVANCE FOR CATCHING THE POTATO BEETLE. 



of hand picking. The pan is made of tin, and any tinman can fashion it. It 
is a box or pan, two feet long, one foot wide, and six inches deep. The bot- 
tom should be round, or cylindrical, so that the rim of the pan can be got 
close to the ground when the vines are small. Stiffen the edge with wire. 
On the inside, at the top, solder a rim or flange about three-quarters of an 
inch wide. This should slant downward somewhat, as its object is to pre- 
vent the ' bugs ' from crawling out when once they have gone in. On one 
side of the pan solder or rivet a handle, such as those on common tin milk- 
pails. On the same side as the handle solder a sliield of tin eighteen inches 
high, and of the same length as the pan, slanting backward a httle. The 
edges should be stiffened with wire. About four inches from the top of the 
shield, and in the center, solder a loop or ring large enough to admit the 
arm to the shoulder. In using, insert the left arm through the loop, and 



is THE FABM. 

grasp the lower handle with the hand, then, holding the pan close up to the 
vines and near the ground, with a crooked stick, like the one represented, 
gather the vines over the pan, giving them a smart shake against the shield 
and over the pan. A good, active man, with this contrivance, can ' bug ' 
an acre of potatoes effectively in two hours." 

Tlie Potato Disease. — There are many devices suggested for avoiding 
the disease known as potato rot. There is one made by an English writer, 
who says it has been found that " by hilling the plants up very high as 
soon as the blight appears, the spores are prevented in a great measure 
from being washed down by the rains, and the rot consequently much di- 
minished. It was found that although the spores were readily washed 
downward through one or two inches of earth, they very rarely reached a 
depth of five inches. The experiment was repeated many tunes Avith the 
uniform result that where the plants were not hilled up, and the tubers lay 
but one or two inches deep, the percentage ©f rot was very large. But 
Avhere the tubers were covered to the depth of five inches, the damage from 
the disease was inconsiderable." If a physician were to say to a patient 
having the small-pox that if the lower part of the body were swathed in 
wet sheets the disease would not get down to the legs and feet, it would be 
a parallel suggestion to this. The rot is a disease which infects the whole 
plant. It has been found that when the disease began in the tops at a late 
stage of the growth, mowing off the diseased tops saved the tubers. This ia 
something like amputating a gangi-ened limb to save the body, and is a rea- 
sonable remedy. But the spores are not always, and are in fact rarely, ripe 
at the season of growth, and are generally in the soil and infect the i)lant 
from the roots. The tubers are not roots, but stems, and receive the infec- 
tion from the roots when the source of it is in the soil. When the leaves are 
infected by spores, carried in the air from distant fields, where they have re- 
mained during the resting season, the disease spreads through the tissues 
of the plant and reaches the tubers in that way, from within, and not from 
without. The spores are not free until the plant decays, being set free by 
the decomposition of the diseased tissues. This being distinctly known, it. 
becomes of the greatest importance to destroy the infected vines by burning 
them, and thus preventing the soil from infection by the matured spores in 
the leaves and stems. Earthing up the potatoes might possibly have helped 
to preserve the tiabers from the disease by removing the water from the 
saturated soil; this water being injurious to the plant and producing all the 
conditions favorable to the spread of the disease. A more healthful condi- 
tion of the plants would tend to prevent tlxis unhealthful condition and con- 
fine the disease to the leaves and stems, and save the tubers. But every 
one who has had diseased potatoes, knows that tubers, apparently sound 
when dug, will rot in the cellar. This is because the disease is already in 
them when they are dug, and develops in them in the course of time from 
the infection. Earthing up cannot save them then, nor can it at any other 
time, excepting through its influence in the way we have pointed out. But 
here, where our seasons are not so wet, it would not avail us as it might the 
farmers of sodden England or Scotland or Ireland, where " the rain it rain- 
eth every day," more or less. This difference of climate is very important to 
be remembered when considering such matters as this from an English view. 

, Metliods of Raising Potatoes — There is, writes a practical farmer, a 
great variety of opinion in regard to raising potatoes, size of seed, and culti-- 



Pi ELD OiiOPB. 49 

Vation. Some advocate large, Avhile others prefer small potatoes for seed, 
thinking that they are as good or better than large ones. They may raise 
good crops from small seed for one or two years, but if they do not obtain 
their seed from those that do take pains to select large seed, I think they 
will soon find their potatoes run out and become small. Why do we select 
a nice, well-shaped ear of corn for seed, not always the largest, but the best 
developed? Also, why screen wheat, oats, etc., to secure the plumpest and 
best seed to plant or sow ? (At least we should if we do not.) We thereby 
raise a better quality of grain, and more of it, from year to year. I do not 
wish any one to infer that we should take the largest potatoes for seed, but 
those of a good marketable size, of nice shape, free from warts, scabs or 
other deformity. 

Having my seed selected, I cut them to single eyes, or at most two, and 
plant them in drills three feet apart, and fifteen inches apart in the drills, 
having the drills deep, in well-plowed and thoroughly pulverized soil. I 
prefer a piece that had corn on the previous year, Nvell manured and plowed 
in for that crop, and kept under good cultivation during the season. On po- 
tatoes I use some good commercial fertilizer that has plenty of potash in it, 
and use it hberally — iOO to 500 pounds per acre. This will help keep the 
wire-worms away, and will increase the potatoes in size and quality, I am 
quite certain. I harrow, as soon as I see the first plants breaking the 
ground, with a smoothing harrow, to kill all the weeds that may have 
started. I cultivate often, whether there are any weeds or not, until they 
are in blossom. I have never failed to raise a good crop of nice smooth po- 
tatoes, and there was always a ready market for them. I often get consid- 
erable more than market price for them, which is quite an advantage in a 
plentiful season. My crop averaged about 500 bushels per acre last sea- 
son. 

How to Keep Sweet Potatoes. — A Texas writer says: I would like to 
give my plan for keeping sweet potatoes. I think the most essential thing 
is to dig them at the proper time, and I think that time is about the full 
moon in October (that is, in Texas). No matter about the weather, unless 
the ground is too wet. I never wait for frost; but if frost comes before the 
full moon, dig as soon as possible, or at least before any rain. I dig with a 
bull-tongue plow; but any way, so they are not cut or bruised too much, 
will do. In gathering them, sort out the cut ones; but before putting up 
let them have at least one day's sun. If the ground is wet, two days is 
better; but in no case let them take the dew of the night. I put them in a 
shallow cellar under some house, say from three to four feet deep. After 
they are put away, throw a little fine, dry dirt over them, just enough to 
dust over the cuts. That will cause them to dry and not commence rotting. 
Let them lay that way till the weather begins to turn cool. Then begin to 
cover up as the weather gets colder, till they are from ten to twelve inches 
deep; in all cases cover with dry dirt. I difi"er with those who want straw 
©r leaves under potatoes; I want them on the ground. 

When they are banked outdoors they should be on an elevated place, or 
throw up the dirt so water will not stand about them. Put the potatoes on 
the naked ground, about twenty-five or thirty bushels in a bank; set up corn 
stalks around them; then throw some grass or leaves on the stalks; bank up 
enough of dirt against the stalks to hold them. Let them stand that way 
till the weather begins to get cool; then begin to cover. When the weather 
gets verv cold thev should be covered at least twelve inches; but in warm 



50 fH£ PARM, 

weather they should have a little air at the top. In all cases have theril 
well sheltered; a very small leak will ruin a bank of potatoes. 

Points About Potatoes—In the judgment of the South Deerfield 
(Mass.) Farmers' Club, potatoes, when properly cared for, are, next to 
tobacco, the best paying crop a farmer can raise. The trouble is, potatoes 
are too often neglected and receive attention only when other crops are 
cared for. Turf land is the best, except in vexy diy seasons. Plow in the 
fall and harrow in a good coat of manure in the spring. Furrow out, and 
in the hills apply ashes and tobacco stalks cut about six inches long, at 
the rate of sixteen loads per acre. Twelve hundred pounds of fish and 
potash to the acre, harrowed in, with a little phosphate in the hill, produced 
a good crop. 

More attention should be given to selecting good seed potatoes. Use 
good-sized smooth tuber cut into four pieces. Change the seed every year 
or two. The Early Kose is the best kind for home use. Peerless, Beauty of 
Hebron, and Burbank Seedling give larger yields, but are inferior in qualitj^ 
The Snowflake bakes well. Early Vermont resembles Early Rose, and is 
better in yield and quaUty. 

Hoeing potatoes is best done with a horse-hoe or tobacco-ridger. Go 
through the piece three times with a horse-hoe, and you wouldn't need to 
put a hoe into it; that is, on smooth land free of stones. To get ahead of the 
bugs, cover the potato tops about an inch deep as soon as they are up; in 
about a week cut a lot of small potatoes into four or more j)ieces and wet 
them and sprinkle Paris green on them, stirring well until the pieces are 
covered with it; scatter these pieces over the field, and the beetle will eat 
them and die. If all do not partake of this wholesome diet and slugs ap- 
pear, apply Paris green mixed with plaster. Potatoes are a paying crop at 
fifty or sixty cents a bushel, and the small ones are excellent to feed hogs, 
stock, and horses. 

Getting Potatoes Early. — Some years ago, writes a correspondent of 
the Qardener^s Moni/dy, 1 conceived the idea of planting my potatoes with 
shoots to them. Probably the sprouts suggested the idea; at any rate I car- 
ried out the plan, and have been so well pleased with it-that I have followed 
it out for three years. A few weeks before planting time I select my seed 
potatoes, and set them in a warm place to sprout. By the time my ground 
is ready the shoots are about three inches in length. The potatoes are 
handled carefully, so as not to break the growth, and cut up in suitable 
sizes, as in the ordinary way. One strong shoot is left to each piece. The 
sets must be put into the ground carefully, of course, or the shoots will be 
broken off. As growth commences at once, the green tops show in a few 
days. There is easily a saving of two weeks time at the start. Those who 
have rather a low ground, which cannot be worked very early in spring, as 
I have, will find this method will enable them to compete with their neigh- 
bors on higher gi'ound, with success. By July 10th, I was using fine Beauty 
of Hebrons (an excellent early sort by the way), planted April 25th. They 
were not then fully ripe, though the yellow tint in the leaves was getting 
quite perceptible. Generally the tops are dead at this date, but an unusu- 
ally fine potato season kept them growing later this year. 

Raising Potatoes. — The following suggestions are from a practical 
farmer: I select a piece of suitable ground in the fall. Sod is best. Ma- 
nure it heavily with good barnyard manure, and plow under so as to let the 



FIELD CROPS. 51 

sod rot before cold weather; then in the spring I manure with well-rotted 
manure on the surface, and harrow thoroughly till the manure is com- 
pletely incorporated Avith the soil; then I mark one way three feet apart 
and plant two pieces in a place about one foot apart, about four inches deep. 
Then, just as the potatoes begin to break ground, I harrow thoroughly, then 
cultivate till it is time to lay by; then I use a single-shovel plow to hill them 
with; keep all weeds down — they are death to potatoes. I have raised from 
450 to 500 bushels to the acre in favorable seasons. 

Now, as to the seed: I cut to a single eye; I would as soon think of plant- 
ing a whole ear of corn in a hill as a whole potato. I have often, in case of a 
new kind, exit the eye cluster into three or four pieces, and had a good hill 
from each piece. As to time of planting, I always try to get my whole crop 
in for early potatoes. I believe the earlier they can be got in the more cer- 
tainty of a good crop. As to kinds, I have raised legions of them, but for 
early, the Beauty of Hebron; for medium, the Burbank's Seedling and the 
Mammoth Pearl; and for late, the Belle and the Late Kose. Of course, 
others are good and may do better in other places. 

Nov Remedy for Potato Bugs. — A farmer successfully tried a remedy 
for potato bugs, as follows: He procured a number of boards and placed 
them here and there among his potatoes, and on these boards were placed 
raw potatoes sliced. At noon on the first day of the experiment he and his 
hired men found every piece of potato covered with bugs. The men killed 
this crop, and at night another crop was killed, though not so large, and in 
a week not a bug could be seen, and his trouble with bugs after this was 
comparatively small. He thinks it would be a good plan to dip the pieces 
of potato in Paris green, as it would save the work of killing the bugs. 

Potatoes ill "Winter. — Potatoes stored in cellars, in some cases, rot. 
To check or prevent this, keep the cellar as cool as possible without freez- 
ing. Then scatter quick-lime over them. This is of threefold benefit. It 
keeps them from rotting, makes the potatoes dryer and better, and disin- 
fects the atmosphere, preserving the family from malarial fevers. 

Expei-iinents in Plowing. — Mr. Knox, a veteran plow-maker, has 
called our attention to the effect of deep plowing of some soils to offeet 
the danger from lack of rains in dry seasons. Some years ago an experi- 
ment was made by a Western Massachusetts farmer in plo^ving poiiions of a 
large field at varying depths. One part was turned over seven inches deep, 
another ten inches, and a third, after being plowed ten inches, was sub- 
soiled to the depth of ten inches more, making a soil comparatively loose 
to the depth of twenty inches. The next year, which was a dry one during 
the summer, corn was grown upon the whole field, which was treated uni- 
formly throughout, and the yield of the three divisions carefully measured. 
The seven-inch plowing yielded as Avell as the ordinary fields in the vicinity. 
That part plowed ten inches deep was greener all through the season, and 
gave decidedly better jdeld, but that which was plowed ten inches, and sub- 
soiled ten inches in addition, produced just one-third more corn than that 
plowed in the usual way, seven inches deep. The next year the whole field 
was by agreement sowed to oats, as a continuation of the experiment, the 
season proving even drier than the preceding one, when corn was grown. 
When the oats were about ready to cut, Mr. Knox, being in the neighbor- 
hood, called to see them. Before reaching the farm, the field came in 
view from the Car windows, and Mr. Knox, who was on the lookout, said to 



52 THE FARM. 

a oompanionj that the gentleman had not done as he agreed, for he could see 
that he had sown different kinds of grain upon the different plots, the size 
and color of the growth both niai'king the lines, dividing the land plowed at 
three different depths. But on arriving at the field he found nothing but 
oats, and as stated by the owner, all sown on the same day, and treated pre- 
cisely alike in every respect. 

On the shallow plowed section, the growth was short and the straw yel- 
low; on the ten-inch ploAving the oats were taller and less yellow, while on 
the sub-soiled portion they were green and very heavy. The final tests 
showed full one-third more grain on the sub-soiled part than on that which 
was plowed only seven inches deep. 

Now, it will not do for farmers to calculate that deeply stirring every kind 
of soils would alone add fifty per cent, in the yield of crops grown upon 
them the following two years, for they would doubtless be disappointed in 
very many cases. Yet, as a rule, a deep, mellow soil from which surplus 
water can readily settle -wdthout making the land into mortar, and through 
which the same moisture can again freely rise by capillary attraction, other 
things being equal, will always bring a farmer the better results. 

There are soils which naturally are never too wet, and rarely too dry, and 
it will usually be found on examination, that they ai-e in the same mechani- 
cal condition for a considerable depth, say two feet or more, that one likes to 
have his surface soil, light, friable, and containing a due proportion of vege- 
table matter. They will also be found to contain sand and clay in about the 
right proportion to keep the soil both mellow and moist through the varying 
climatic conditions. Deep plowing of stiff clays is often dangerous at first; 
but a good dry soil suits all kinds of crops in all kinds of weather. Deep 
plowing tends to make such a soil, but this alone will not always be sufficient. 
Draining and manuring must accompany deep plowing. 

Early or Late Fall Plowing. — There is this against early fall plow- 
ing, that it favors the springing up of grass and weeds, which necessitates re- 
plowing in the spring. The fall rains, should they be heavy, will pack the 
surface of clay soil, which the frost that follows does not always relieve, and 
never if pressed during the winter by a deep snow. This not only compels 
plowing in the spring, but the soil then turns up rough, and generally too 
wet and sticky, and also it is necessarily done late in the season, so that fall 
plowing, instead of benefiting, hurts it, and the crop for the season is lost or 
seriously affected— the land shoAving it for a year or two more. But as the 
season is now advanced, there is Uttle danger from the rains; the land would 
rather be benefited by them. Late plowing, therefore, is in order. Land 
ordinarily the wettest can now be plowed to the greatest advantage. It 
requires more power to break it, but the improved condition in the spring 
will more than pay the expense. This is a point not sufficiently considered. 

If late fall plowing is an advantage, better still if it can be done in winter 
or early in spring, so as to be followed by freezing and thawing. My best 
success has been obtained by winter and early spring plowing. Yet there is 
hardly a year in Avhich one of the three seasons — either late in the fall, during 
the winter or early in the spring— is not available. To make as sure as pos- 
sible, do the work in the fall, if the ground will admit, but avoid making 
mortar. The same applies to winter and early spring. 

Other soils, especially the sand and leaohy shales, have less to fear 
from water; they are also less benefited by the frost. They are the soils, 
therefore, that may be left unplowed till spring. One of the difficulties with 



FIELD VMOFS. 58 

spring plowing is that it does not allow of the winter application of manure, 
should it be required, though with an early spring and favorable weather, 
this may be done without interfering much with the work Avhich usually 
requires all the time. The aim s-hould be always to get the plowing done 
near to winter (or in it) as possible, so as to get the benefit of the freezing 
and thawing, and avoid the packing of the heavy rains. 

The Philosopliy of Hoeing — It may be overdone- or underdone. There 
is reason in everything, "even in reasting eggs," as the saying is. So in 
hoeing crops. If we hoe up the soil ia large lumps, as we are apt to do with 
the xery serviceable modern prong-hoes, we let the keen, dry air into con- 
tact with the starting but enfeebled roots, and, by their parching, an irre- 
parable injury is done. Such lumps should be crushed down so as 'to be 
permeable to air throughout, and yet serve to protect the roots from its free 
sweep. But, as in avoiding Scylla we may run to wreck on Charybdis, so, in 
crushing the soil, we may make it too fine, in wliich case the first heavy rain 
will run the surface together in a crust impervious to the air, and, for want 
of enough of air, essential to active root action, growth will be checked until 
the hoe or its equivalent is used. 

Q,aantity of Seed to an Acre—The following should be kept for 
reference: "Barley, broadcast, two to three bushels; bean, pole, in hills, 
ten to twelve quarts; beets, in drills, five to six pounds; broom coi'n, in hills, 
eight to ten quarts; buckwheat, one bushel; cabbage, in beds, to transplani, 
half pound; carrots, in drills, three to four pounds; Chinese sugar canw 
twelve quarts; clover, red, alone, fifteen to twenty pounds; clover, alsike, 
alone, eight to ten pounds; clover, lucerne or alfalfa, twenty pounds; corn, 
in hills, eight to ten quarts; corn for soiling, three bushels; cucumber, in 
hills, two pounds; flax, broadcast, one and one-half bushels; grass, Ken- 
tucky blue, three bushels; grass, orchard, three bushels; grass, EngUsh rye, 
two bushels; grass, red top, three bushels; grass, timothy, one-half bushel; 
grass, Hungarian, one bushel; grass, mixed lawn, four bushels; hemp, one 
and one-half bushels; mustard, broadcast, half bushel; melon, musk, in 
hills, two to three pounds; melon, water, in hills, four to five pounds; millet, 
common, broadcast, one bushel; oats, broadcast, two to thr-ee bushels; 
onion, in drills, five to six pounds; onion for sets, in drills, thirty pounds; 
onion, sets, in drills, six to twelve bushels; parsnips, in drills, four to six 
pounds; peas, in drills, one and one-half bushels; peas, broadcast, three 
bushels; potatoes (cut tubers), ten bushels; pumpkin, in hills, four to six 
pounds; radish, in drills, eight to ten pounds; rye, broadcast, one and one- 
half to two bushels; salsify, in drills, eight to ten pounds; spinach, in drills, 
twelve to fifteen pounds; sage, in drills, eight to ten pounds; squash, bush 
varieties, in hills, four to six pounds; squashy running varieties, hills, three 
to four pounds; tomatoes, to transplant, quarter pound; turnip, in drills, one 
pound; turnip, broadcast, half pound; vetches, broadcast, two to three 
bushels; and wheat broadcast, one and one-half to two bushels." 

Soaking Seeds — I am often asked, writes a New England agriculturist, 
whether it does any good to soak seeds before sowing th«m ? In general I 
believe it does more harm than good, and if dona at all, a good deal of 
judgment should be used to prevent mischief. Thus peas, beans and corn 
are often soaked to hasten germination with the belief that they will come a 
day or two earlier, but in case the weather is cold and wet for some time 
after sowing the seed, it will be more likely to suffer- injury from the weather 



hi THE FARM. 

than if sown dry. Especially is this true of the McLean pea and other deli- 
cate green peas, and of the various kinds of sweet corn. When the weather 
is dry and hot, however, it may be an advantage to steep the seeds before 
using them, and especially so in the case of seeds that are slow to germinate, 
snch as celery and parsnips and carrots. To steep these seeds for a few 
days until germination has started and then dry them just enough to make 
them pass readily through the seed drill, will hasten their coming up, so 
that weeding will be less difficult in case the laud is foul: but such seed 
should not be sown upon foul land if it can be avoided. Care is required in 
steeping seed that fermentation does not occur, which Avill frequently kill the 
seed. It may be arrested by turning off the water and spreading out the 
seed thinly upon a piece of sheeting and partially drjang it. To steep seeds 
in chemical solutions with the belief that this will answer in place of fertihz- 
iug the land, I believe, is sheer humbug and imposition upon common sense. 
The only chemical stufifs that have proved useful, so far as I know, arc the 
blue vitriol to destroy germs of smut, strychnine to destroy crows and black- 
birds and a smearing of tar on coni seed for protection from these birds. 

Raisiug Roots. —The average farmer is now devoting all his energies to 
the production of the greatest possible number of bushels of grain. Concen- 
tration of effort is generally commendable, but when applied to oue particu- 
lar branch of agriculture to the exclusion of others just as important, or to 
the detriment of the whole enterprise, it is not commendable. In other 
words, it is very bad management, and the evil effects of such a course will, 
sooner or later, become manifest in the exhaxisted condition of the soil, where 
this system of indiscriminate grain raising has been pursued. 

The true pohcy of farming is to produce good crops and feed them out, so 
far as practicable, upon the farm. The larger the stock carried on the farm 
the greater will be the amount of fertilizing material produced. 

In this case, good management Avould consist in growing those crops from 
which we could realize the greatest return per acre, thereby enabling us to 
carry more stock upon a given area. 

Considered in this way, the root crop is an important factor in stock 
raising, as it jields largely to the acre, and is a most nutritious and whole- 
some diet, when stock is deprived of other green food during the feeding 
months. Aside from their nutritious qualities, roots possess a mechanical 
value of no less importance, as they materially aid in the assimilation of dry 
food, which too often forms the exclusive diet of stall-fed stock. 

Of all roots, carrots are the most nutritious, and when the soil is deep, 
rich, a«d mellow, they will yield enormously, sometimes as high as ten or 
twelve tons to the acre. They keep well and can be fed all the year round 
if properly cared for. They are not so easily harvested as the beet and man- 
gold, as the roots penetrate deeply into the soil, necessitating the use of the 
spade or plow when harvesting. Probably, for this reason, they are not so 
extensively raised as they should be. 

The mangold seems to be the favorite at present, as, perhaps, all things 
considered, it should be. Under the most favorable circumstances it Avill 
\deld even heavier than the carrot, and it also keeps well for spring feeding. 
Rutabagas and turnips come last in the order when considered as to their 
respective values. The greatest argument in their favor is, that they can be 
raised with the least labor and can be raised as a second crop, sown late in 
the season. This is particularly the case with the turnip, which may be 
gown as late as August 1st. 



PISLD CHOPS. 55 

To raise roots profitably, wo must, of course, do away as far as possible, 
with all hand labor. The garden or field should be long and narrow, with 
the drills running lengthwise, so that horse-power may be used to advan- 
tage when cultivating them. For sowing, the garden seeder, run by hand, 
is the best implement. When rightly managed this work need not interfere 
with other farm work. Many farmers have an idea that such crops must be 
in the ground the very first of the season, before the other field crops are 
sown; but such is not the case. Those calculated for feeding out to stock 
should not be started out before the first of June. By leaving them until 
this time, the seeds will germinate more surely and rapidly, and the weeds 
will not have three or four Aveeks the start of the plants, as is the case when 
sown early in the spring. 

Let us have acres of roots this year instead of rods. I am confident that 
the farmer who sows and properly cares for an acre of roots this year, will 
want two acres or more next year. 

-Storing Root.'^. — A writer in the Nebraska Farmer says: " We always 
find turnips put in the cellar become pithy and worthless. My method is to 
obviate this, and I do it in this way: When I pull my turnips I cut off the 
top way down into the turnip, cut deep enough to cut all the eye out; then 
cut the root off smooth and nice, and you have them in a condition to place 
in a cool part of the cellar, or to bury out in open ground, and you need 
have no fear of pithy turnips. Beets should be buried out of doors, with 
manure over the dirt, so the ground will not freeze. In this way you can 
get at them any time in the winter. A part of the parsnip crop should be in 
the fall; they may be put in the cellar; no matter if they do wilt, they are so 
much the sweeter." 

Cutting Clover Hay. — Clover hay is greatly improved by curing in the 
cock. The method is as follows: The clover cut in the forenoon is left to 
wilt in the swath until evening. Before the dew begins to fall it is raked 
into winrows, and is thus left until noon the next day. Then it is spread, 
and is exposed for an hour or two to the sun. It is then raked and heaped 
into cocks, about four feet wide and five feet high, and then left until the 
whole crop is ready to carry off the field, or at least twenty-four hours. In 
the cock it ferments, heats and sweats, but takes no injury, because the 
heated vapor passes off freely, as may be noticed by walking in the field at 
night. During this curing process, some of the woody fiber is changed to 
starch and sugar, and the quality of the hay thereby improved. Before the 
hay is hauled the cocks are thrown over, and the insides are aired for a 
short time, to evaporate any moisture. It is then drawn to the barn, and al- 
though it may heat again, it \nl\ suffer no injury. Generally it will not heat 
after the first fermentation, and will go into the barn gi'een, sweet and with- 
out any loss of leaf by over-drying. Sometimes immature buds have bloomed 
in the mow when the clover has been thus cured, and the hay has preserved 
even the color of the fresh blossoms. 

Making Hay_A Good Suggestion — Farmers who have cut grass for 
hay should let it alone during the continuance of wet weather. There is no 
greater mistake than to break the swath, as grass never takes less harm and 
throws off more wet than just as it is left by the scythe or machine. Every 
blade of grass is provided by nature with a waterproof mantle in the shape- 
of an impenetrable glassy covering of silica. This envelope is perfectly able 
• to keep out the rain; but tedding and turning breaks it and opens joints into 



66 THE FAUM. 

which the wet enters. It is then that the mischief begins, the external wet 
miaghng with the internal sap and causing fermentation. How long grass 
will resist the bad effects of rain we hardly venture to state, but we are con- 
fident that a week or ten days' bad weather will be best met by the passive 
system here indicated. 

To Banisli Crows Prom a Field. — Machinery of various kinds, such 
as wind-mills in miniature, horse rattles, etc., to be put in motion by the wind, 
are often employed to frighten crows; but with all these they sooh become 
famiUar, when they cease to be any use at all. The most effectual method 
of banishing them from a field, as far as expeiience goes, is to combine with 
one or the other of the scare-crows in vogue the frequent use of the musket. 
Nothing strikes such terror into these sagacious animals as the sight of a 
fowUng-piece and the explosion of gunpowder, wliich they have known so 
often to be fatal to their race. Such is their dread of a fowling-piece that if 
one is placed on a dyke or other eminence, it will for a long time prevent 
them from alighting on the adjacent grounds. Many persons now, howevei", 
beUeve that crows, like most other birds, do more by destroying insects and 
worms, etc., than harm by eating grain. 

About Tobacco Grooving — The ground for tobacco shoula be plowed 
in the fall or early in spring, six to eight inches deep, and just before plant- 
ing plow it again, this time more shallow. Pulverize, and level the surface 
80U, then mark out in checks or drills. If White Burley tobacco is to be 
grown make the rows three and a half feet one Avay by twenty inches the 
other. Always procure well matured, pure seed, and be sure that it is true 
to name. Some kinds are better adapted to certain soils than are others, and 
you may labor under a disadvantage if seeds are not true to name. When 
the plants appear above the ground, after being transplanted, begin using 
the hoe and continue until they are too large to work in. 

Seed Corn. — In an address on the subject of corn. Professor Beal re- 
marked that the top-most ear was the best for seed; of two fields, one 
planted with seed taken at random and the otber selected in the field, the 
latter yielded as much again as the former. Manure and cultivation may be 
thrown away on poor seed. The best time to cultivate corn is before plant- 
ing. A shallow cultivation was recommended. Twenty-three ears of com 
can be pi'oduced from one kernel: by proper cultivation and the use of the 
best seed as high as twenty-five ears. Smut is a great damage to corn, and 
smutty corn is very injurious to cattle. 

Weeds. — There is no surer or better way to perpetuate weeds, than to 
pull or mow them and cart to the bam yard or pig pen. The seeds will 
ripen perfectly, and when carted out to the field again with the manure, 
they will find plant food just where they would put it were they, instead of 
us, lords over creation. If one finds a weed that he is choice of, with its 
thousands of seeds just ripening, and fears that pulUng and leaving it on the 
ground will cause the seeds to rot from dampness, it is well to deposit such 
weed on a rock or fence, where it will dry, and the seeds ripen in safety. 

Improving Pasture I.ands. — A few years since, says a writer, I had 
an old pasture that had almost run out, covered with weeds and patched 
with moss. I mixed a few barrels of salt and wood ashes, and applied about 
two ban-els of the mixture per acre, covering about half of the lot. The 
result surprised me. Before fall the moss had nearly all disappeared, and 



ike weeds were rapidly following suit, while the grass eame in thick, assum- 
ing a dark-green color, and made fine pasturage. The balance of the lot re- 
mained unproductive as before, but the follo-\ving year it was salted with like 
results. 

Blue Grass and Tiinotliy. — A writer on blue grass says: "Prepare 
the ground late the previous autumn, so that it may have a mellow, fi-esh 
surface in the spiing, and very early sow timothy, clover, and blue grass at 
the same time. About two crops of clover and timothy are obtained before 
the blue grass gets fiill possession. After that it chokes them out. The 
land is not pastured in less than two years from sowing." 

Combining Different Varieties of Potatoes. — It is said that the 
qualities of two different varieties of potatoes may be combined in one new 
variety in the following maimer: Cut an eye, with some of the flesh, from 
one kind and insert it in a corresponding cut in another with which you 
desire to mix. When the sprout starts it will feed for a time upon the 
potato and partake of its qualities. 

Killing Canada Tliistles. — The best way is to let them grow until they 
blossom, then cut them off" near the top of the ground; the jtalk will then be 
hollow; the water will get in the holloAV and rot them, so they will never 
sprout again. If they are cut off with a hoe or plow, the ground will close 
over them, and there will come two sprouts for one. 

Late "Weeds— In the old wheat fields, where the weeds have started up, 
turn in the sheep. They are not dainty in the choice of food, and weeds that 
are pushed forward by the late rains might as well be converted into mutton 
as to remain and make the field foul. 



FERTTLTZERS. 



A Few "Words About I.ime. — Professor Puryear, who is recognized as 
a skillful cliemist, gives in a recent paper the following succinct suggestions 
on the uses and misuses of lime: 

"What are the uses of lime in agriculture ? 

1. Lime is always one of the nine substances found in the ash of plants. 
The grasses and forest trees particularly take it up from the soil in great 
abundance. 'VV'^hen lime is not present in the soil in sufficient abtkndance to 
meet this demand, it should be added. 

2. Lime is needed to hasten the decomposition of vegetable matter, and 
8o make it available as plant food. If we wrap up a piece of Hme in. a cloth, 
in a short time the cloth is so decomposed that it will fall into shreds from 
its own weight. Tanners use lime in their vats to rot the hair from the 
hides. Now, lime behaves exactly in this way in the soil. The vegetable 
matter in the soil is useless until it decomposes, and lime hastens the pro- 
cess of decomposition. 

3. Lime is frequently necessary to correct acidity in the soil. Soils 
charged with vegetable acids are never productive. On such soils we piit 
lime, which, com!»ining with these acids, forms neutral salts of lime. A 
person takes a little lime-water for the same reason when he suffers from 
acidity of the stomach. WTien lands have been freshly drained, they are 
always acid. The excess of water, with which the land was saturated, had 
excluded the atmosphere, and so had prevented the complete decomposition 
of vegetable matter. This vegetable matter, if the air had not been excluded, 
would have been converted by atmospheric oxygen into carbonic acid, am- 
monia, etc., ijut, without oxygen, its elements rearrange themselves, and 
form those injurious compounds, ulmic, humic, and geic acids. When the 
soil is drained, the atmosphere strikes through and destroys these acids, 
but not entirely in a single season. The process, of necessity, is slow. The 
soil to the depth of several feet, it may be, is sour, and it will be some time 
before the atmosphere can thoroiighly permeate this soil and burn out these 
hurtful acids. Lime, then, comes to help the slow operation of natural 
causes. "When it is spread upon the soil, it is carried downward by the 
rains, and combines with and neutralizes speedily and effectu.ally the vege- 
table acids. We cannot possibly err, then, when we put lime on freshly- 
drained lands. In such lands there are not only free acids, but a large 
amount of organic matter, which has not been decomposed because of the 
exclusion of atmospheric oxygen. The application of lime to such soils cor- 
rects this acidity, and, by decomposuig, renders immediately available this 
large amount of vegetable matter. 

The ash of the grasses contains twenty-two per cent, of Hme. Hence the 
practice of top-dressing the grasses with gypsum, whiclT is the sulphate of 
lime. 

Lime may be injuriously applied. If the soil contain but little vegetable 
matter, the application of lime, particularly heavy applications, will cause 



FEETl LJZEJIS. 59 

this vegetable matter to tiecompoae too quickly. When the crop approaches 
maturity it finds that its quantum of vegetable matter has already been 
decomposed and used up. The resialt will be conspicuously disastrous if 
the soil was not deticient in lime. The lime has supplied no want, but has 
only inflicted an injui-y, 

1. Lime is known as caustic or quick lime. This is the article as we obtain 
it fi'om the kiln. Heat has expelled carbonic acid from the carbonate of 
lime, and caustic linie is the resiilt. 

2. Hydrated or slaked lime. When we add to lumps of caustic lime 
about twenty-live per cent, of water, the lumps fall down into a perfectly dry 
powder, giving its slaked lime. 

3. Upon exposure to the atmosphere, this slaked lime ji!oses its properties. 
It becomes the carbonate of lime, or mild lime — the very compound chemi- 
cally from which the lime was originally obtained. This mild lime, or car- 
bonate of Ume, has no caiistic or disorganizing properties whatsoever. It 
may be asked, then, why we do not use lime in its natural state, namely the 
carbonate of lime, if it gets into that condition when we spread it on the soil V 
We answer: 

1. Although lime goes back to carbonate of lime, it does not do so all at 
once, and, in the process of returning to that condition, it decomposes 
vegetable matter, and so makes it plant food. 

2, The natural limestone rock — the carbonate— is very hard, and its re- 
duction to a powder by mechanical means would be difficult and expensive. 
Now, when lime slakes in the air, it falls down into a dry powder. No 
mechanical reduction, therefore, is necessary. It requires less expendittire 
of force to burn the limestone, and let the lime fall to powder of itself, than 
to reduce the natural rock by mechanical power. 

Trees, like grasses, contain lime largely. The indication is to apply old 
mortar, or lime in any form, to fruit or shade trees, and this should be done 
in the fall. 

Hoiae-Macle Fertilizers for tlie " Common Farmer." — The follow- 
ing is from the Ohio Fanner: Let us look at an average barnyard — one that 
may be met with most anywhere. Here we see a large pile of horse manure 
steaming aAvay as though on fire. Here a pile of cow manure all frozen so it 
cannot rot its own litter before summer. There a pile of dry corn-stalks, as 
they have been thrown out of the feeding-room. In one part of the yard 
stands a straAV stack that the cattle run around and pull down, but the scat- 
terings are left close around the stack, and are tramped two feet deep, Avhile 
a few feet from the stack the ground may be seen. The corner of the yard 
where the out-door feeding is done is the only portion that is in any order 
for manure. 

Now I will leave it to my readers if I have not described an average baru- 
yard. This is where farmers are to blame. It is but little trouble to keep 
our barnyards in proper shape if we only will. Let us ask the proprietor of 
our sample barnyard if he has so much work during winter that he cannot 
attend to his yard. His answer will be: "No, but I thought the barnyard 
could take care of itself." With most of farmers there is a great deal of 
spare time during the winter. Their work, aside from stock feeding, is not 
very pushing, and a day's time now and then would not be missed. Let us 
have that day once in a while to straighten up that yard, and I will see to it 
that you are paid for it next fall. Let us take a fork every few days and go 
around that straw stack, taking the loose straw that is under foot and cover 



60 THE FARM. 

up that bare spot of ground. Throw it wherever ^Jae manure is thiu, and the 
cattle will tramp it more, making better manure of the straw, while it helps 
the quality of what is already there. Take a horse and sled every week or 
so, and move that pile of horse manure and that pile of eoru-stalks. Put 
them around iu thin spots in your yard, like you did that straw, and then see 
what a difference it makes in your yard. Above that cow manure pile just 
have a few stock hogs where they can get at it, and I dare say it will be taken 
care of. Two or three hogs are the best aids you can find to assist about the 
yards, but in justice to the h«gs I will say that it is not the best thing for 
them. But every farmer has a fcAV stock hogs that he is carrying over 
winter, and I am sure he cannot keep them cheaper than in his barnyard, 
where they get most of their living out of the cattle dropi^ings and what is 
left after feeding. If your cattle are fed on corn in the stable, the hogs will 
thoroughly scatter the manure pile to secure the corn. 

But noAV let us look a little to the bedding of our cows and horses. You 
read of A.'s or B.'s plan of securing liqiaid manure by troughs and pits, but 
you say you cannot do that way. I Avill tell you what you can do. Go to 
that straw stack and take largely of straw to bed your stock with. Don't be 
afraid of it, but make their bedding deep, especially behind them, where it 
Avill catch all the droppings. Then in cleaning your stables don't sort the 
straw too close, but throw out all that is dirty and fill up again with clean 
straw. The resiilt will be that you are saving nearly all the liquid manure 
as well as brother A. or B. does it, and you have not had any of the trouble 
you were so afraid of. Moreover, your cows have had the benefit of a nice 
bed to sleep on, and they come oxit of the stable looking clean, instead of 
reminding you of a Avalking manure pile, as we often see cattle that are 
poorly bedded. There are some who have not got this extra amount of straw 
to lavish on their stock. To all such I say, go to your nearest saw-mill and 
get sawdust, and use fi-eely for bedding, as this is as neai-ly as good an 
absorbent as straw, and makes good bedding. 

Now, my brother farmers, such of you as unit not give heed to the subject 
of foreign fertilizers and articles pertaining thereto, just try my plan for 
your own home-made fertilizers, and see how much you can increase them, 
and just that much will you increase your profits of the farm. • Let us keep 
our eyes open through the winter, and at every opportunity turn a hand 
toward the barnyard, and manage carefully until we turn our stock out in 
the spring, and then we will counsel together again as to how we will handle 
what we have already saved, so as to improve the quaUty, and reduce the 
quantity, thus lessening the expense of removing to the field. 

^oiiietliiiBg in Regard to Fertilizers. — Difterent soils and different 
crops require veiy much different treatment and different elements of plant 
food. A judicious cultivation of the soil adds to its producing capacity. The 
elements of plant growth contained in soils are unlocked and made available 
to some extent by proper worldng of the soil. It was formerly beheved that 
it was necessary to add all the constituents of plant growth to the soil before 
plants could be produced. That if we wished to raise wheat we must add 
the constituents of wheat. If we -vAdshed to raise potatoes add the constitu- 
ents of potatoes. This is not now considered absolutely necessary. If we 
use a fertilizer rich in nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash, with judicious 
rotation of crops, we may not only raise good crops indefinitely, but bring 
the land up to a higher state of productiveness every year. 

On soms soils we could safely leave out the potash, enough being yielded 



FERTILIZERS. fil 

annually by decomposing particles of soil — unlocking the sand grains, as it 
were, to get their treasures. On some soils nitrogen perhaps would not be 
called for at first, and on others, rarer still, phosphoric acid might for a 
time be found sufficient in the soil. 

Cereal crops are especially benefited by nitrogen and nitrogenous man- 
ures. Usually from forty to eighty pounds per acre are required for full 
crops or largest crops. Clover is the best medium to use in charging soils 
vnih. nitrogen. It is a nitrogen trap that is easily set and sure to catch. 
Clover may be specially fertilized with plaster. Potash is of little value in 
cereal growing, and phosphoric acid not greatly called for. In connection 
with nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash are both useful in small 
quantities. 

For Indian corn phosphoric acid is perhaps the best special fertilizing 
element. Land plaster often does good service. On some soils potash also 
proves valuable. 

Grass requires all the elements of plant food. Well-rotted manure is 
perhaps the best special manure for it. Bone-dust comes next. Either of 
these can be used at seeding, or afterward as top dressing. Clover requires 
nitrogen and phosphoric acid in small quantities. Potash and lime are its 
moet valuable manures. Turnips require nitrogen and phosphoric acid, the 
latter in soluble form. Superphosphates are specials for the turnip crop. 
Mangels want more nitrogen and less phosphoric acid than turnips. Potatoes 
are similar to turnips in their likes, and on most soils they need a supply of 
potash furnished. There is usually potash enough in our common barnyard 
manure for potatoes. 

One hundred pounds of good bone, thirty-five pounds sulphuric acid, and 
thirteen pounds of Avater, mixed in a wooden vat or tub, will make one 
hundred and forty-eight pounds superphosphate dry. In mixing, however, 
much more water will be found necessary to possibly properly mix the mass, 
and when properly mixed, if after standing a day or two it is too damp, may 
be dried by adding ground plaster, or other material. The bone-dust should 
be wet with the water first, then the acid added, a little at a time; by so 
doing the vessel in which the mixture is made is less acted upon, and the 
incorporation with and action upon the bone is better. Stir with a wooden 
hoe or mixer. Never attempt to reduce whole bones with the sulphuric 
acfd. 

The advantage of reducing bones or rock phosphate with sulphuric acid 
is to render the solubility in water the greater when applied to the soils. 
Liming soils really adds no plant food to the soil, but has a tendency to 
develop it in the soil by the caustic, dissolving, breaking-down effect that 
the action of the lime has upon the particles of the soil, unlocking them, 
making them give up their hidden stores of plant food. It not only acts 
upon the mineral constituents in the soil, but upon the vegetable constituent 
parts. 

Variation in Manure^ — The subject of manures is ©f the highest im- 
portance in practical farming, for it is the basis of every effort at improve- 
ment. It is much better understood than formerly, thanks to the effort of 
agricultural scientists, combined with the experiments of practical workers. 
There are, however, some points which, though fully established, are too 
often overlooked. One of the most important of these is that bulk counts 
for little in fertilization as compared with quality. The introduction of 
guano and similar concentrated fertilizers, as superphosphate, nitrate© of 



62 THE FARM. 

potash or soda, has had a wonderfully educating influence in this respect. 
Farmers have marveled to see the large results from application of a few 
hundred pounds per acre of these fertilizers, and in some quarters these re- 
sults have led to an undervaluation of the home-made manures. The fact 
that the concentrated fertilizer, being deposited generally with the seed, is 
more immediately available, does not demonstrate its superiority except for 
the single crop to which it is applied. The farmer who owns the land he 
tills, as most American farmers do, is interested not only in immediate pro- 
tits, but in maintaining, if not increasing, the fertility of his soil. It behooves 
such a farmer to make himself thoroughly posted as to the comparative 
value of stable and barnyard manures made fi'om different feeds and by dif- 
lerent animals. 

There is a much greater variation in the value of stable manure than is 
usually supposed, and this not depending on the amount or quality of the 
litter used as an absorbent, but rather on the excrement itself. A well-fed 
horse standing idle in the stable passes more of the mannrial value of what 
he eats in his excreta than the same horse fed on the same material and 
hard at work. The nitrogenous and phosphatic materials that are of gi-eat- 
est value for all crops are precisely those which are retained in the working 
animal to repair the waste of sinew and bone fnmi labor. There is an equal 
and invariable difference in manure, depending on the kind and value of the 
food used. It does not follow that food of highly fattening qualities will 
make rich manure. Few materials are more fattening than sugar, but as 
sugar is only carbon, though it -will lay on fat rapidly, it adds little of vahie 
to the manure pile. Oil-meal makes a valuable fertilizer, for while the oil 
in the meal is fattening, it is also rich in phosphates. English farmers have 
grown rich, or, what is the same thing, made their farms rich, by feeding 
oil-cake to fattening animals. The oil, of little value manurially, went into 
the fat cattle and sheep, Avhile the principal part of the most valuable fertil- 
izing material was returned to their farms. We have other feeds costing 
nmch less than oil-meal, which for the resulting manure are nearly or quite 
as valuable. Among the least understood of these feeds is wheat-bran and 
coarse middlings. These are rich in the phosphates, comparatively poor in 
fattening qualities, but of more value for working animals than is generally 
siipposed. It has been found by experiment that a mixture of wheat-ba-an 
with com-meal makes a much better feed for Avork-horses than corn alone. 
It is not only in diluting the corn, which by itself is of too heating a nature, 
that such a seed is valuable, but the bran is absolutely richer in nitrogen 
and greatly richer in phosphates than the corn-meal. 

The time Avill undoubtedly come when progressive farmers in the older 
sections of the country will feed for the purpose of making the most valuable 
manures with as much carefulness as they now feed for growth, milk, wool, 
or fat. In large sections of the country most of the profit of feeding must be 
found in the manure pile. As this fact becomes better recognized, the nia- 
nurial value of certain feeds and the difference in the resultant manures will 
leceive that attention which its importance in the farm economy deserves 

How to Euricli the Soll._The Farm and Fireside says: The produc- 
tion of paying crops on old, upland clay soils depends largely upon restoring 
to it, in the most economical way, the plant-food most needed by the crop to 
be grown. If corn is to be grown, maniu'es containing a liberal amount of 
phosphoric acid and potash will be required. As these substances are valu- 
able, constant cropping with corn will soon greatly diminish the value of the 



FERTILIZERS. {^^ 

land. If wheat is to be grown care must be taken to supply the necessary 
amount of phosphates. Wheat, oats, barley, and rye each require a large 
per cent, of ammonia, which accounts in part for the excellent results that 
follow the use of ammoniated superphosphates. If a ci-op of seven hundred 
and fifty pounds of seed cotton is grown upon an acre of land, about six and 
one third pounds of phosphoric acid and seven and a half of potash will be 
taken fi'om the soil. In growing tobacco the soil is quickly exhausted of 
potash; for this reason excellent results follow the planting of this crop on 
newly cleared lands. Manures of all kinds should be carefully saved and 
applied to suit the needs of the crop to be grown. Cabbage grows luxuriantly 
when supplied with green manure. The bean plant, on the contrary, 
requires that which is thoroughly rotted. Nitrogenous manures greatly in- 
crease the yield of wheat and other grains, and when used with phosphates 
on soils of average fertility, give a visible increase of root crops also. An- 
other important factor in em-iching the soil is a judicious rotation of crops, to 
be determined to some extent by the soil, climate, and the leading crops to 
be grown. In the North clover is indispensable, but in the South the corn- 
field pea answers an excellent purpose, especially for green manuring. In 
this section, where the soil is clay, and wheat and corn are the leading crops, 
red clover is indispensable. Soil exhaustion may be measurably prevented 
by even the simplest of all rotations, that of wheat, followed by clover, and 
this by corn. Such a rotation may be begun by sowing red clover in March 
upon the fields now seeded with wheat. Sow three pecks of red clover and 
one peck of mammoth clover, and one peck of timothy seed upon each six 
acres. The clover should not be pastured for the first year, except fer a 
sufficient time for the hogs to pick up the scattered grain after harvest. 
After the 1st of June of the second year the clover can be pastured, but a 
sufficient quantity of that in which the most timothy gi'ows should be 
reserved to cut for hay. This system provides for the accumulation of 
manure in a level yard with raised sides, so that the liqxTids will keep the 
entire crop of wheat straw and refuse cornstalks and other matter in a moist 
condition, and the decomposition of these materials is much hastened. After 
the haying and harvesting season is over, twenty-two horse loads of manure 
are applied to the acre on the clover field; that is to be plowed to a depth of 
eight to ten inches very early the following spring, where the corn corp is to 
be planted. Each load is divided into eight piles, placed five and one-half 
yards apart. Before seeding to wheat the corn is cut and shocked, and a 
heavy, sharp-toothed harrow precedes the drill. The high-cut stalks, when 
harrowed down, act as a mulch for the wheat plants during the winter, and 
measurably prevent washing even upon high ridges. A great advantage in 
this method of rotation is that the labor reqiiired to bring up the land in 
April is not half as great as in midsummer, and the corn, by being planted 
fully a Aveek earlier than it can be on similar soils where there is no sod, 
yields abundantly and matures early, so that there is no delay in seeding 
with wheat early in the fall. As may be inferred from what has already 
been said, the prime factors for cheaply enriching the soil and increasing its 
fertility annually, are the hbei'al application of properly-cared-for barnyard 
manure, and a systematic rotation of crops, of which red clover is the basis. 

Composting Manure. — Mixing manure or fertilizers is laborious work, 
and if nothing is gained by it, it is labor lost. But something may be gained 
by it when the condition of the material can be changed for the better, and 
at the same time something may be lost Avhen anything can be changed for 



iU TitE FAkM. 

the worse. In composting, for instance, snch raw substances as swamp 
muck, leaves, tannery wastes, with manure, or in mixing various manures, 
as from the hoi'se stable, cow sheds, pig pens, and poultry house, valuable 
results may be obtained; while in mixing lime or wood ashes with manure, 
and especially in mixing the common fertilizer with poultry manure and 
wood ashes, harm may be done and valuable fei'tilizing matter may be 
wasted. In the one case the more actively fermenting horse or pig manure 
will serve to decompose more readily the colder cow manure, and to pro- 
duce decomposition in the abundant litter or raw matter that may have been 
used. Besides, when the whole manure heap has been reduced to an even 
and homogeneous condition and quality, it is made more valuable for use in 
the field, and "neither unduly or wastefully enriches one portion of it while 
inadequately fertilizing another portion. It is, therefore, a judicious and 
useful practice to mix these manures or these substances in the heap, either 
in the yard or the field, and so add considerably to the value of a part with- 
out detracting from the value other portions. But in the other case much 
harm may be done by mixing any substances in the heap which may exert 
an injurious action upon the others. This may happen when hme or wood 
ashes are mixed with the manure or mth the poultry manure; and the more 
harm is done, the richer in ammonia the manure may be. Lime and potash 
are alkalies, and when fresh are in a caustic condition. That is, they are 
free from carbonic acid, which, when combined with an alkali, renders it 
neutral, or mild and inert. When fresh lime or wood ashes are mixed witli 
manure they at once seek to combine with carbonic acid, from whatever 
source they can procure it. Ammonia is an alkali, and in manure is gener- 
ally in combination with carbonic acid as carbonate of ammonia. The hme 
or wood ashes take the carbonic acid from the carbonate of ammonia, and 
the ammonia escapes as gas into the air, and so far as the owner of the ma- 
nure is concerned this ammonia is lost, and as ammonia is the most valuable 
and costly fertilizing element in existence, the loss is very serious. It is 
easy, however, to avoid this loss by using the lime or the ashes by them- 
selves on the soil, and not with the manure directly, in which way they will 
do as much good. 

But sometimes it is advisable to mix hme or wood ashes in a compost 
heap, and this may be done safely when the special behavior of these three 
indispensable substances are understood. If the manure is quite fresh 
there is very little ammonia in it, and if there is more, a large proportion of 
absorbent matter, as swamp muck in the heap \f\\\ absorb and hold it, and 
carbonic acid will be produced by its decomposition in sufficient quantity to 
saturate the alkah of the lime or ashes or to take up the ammonia as fast as 
it is formed or set free. In fact, a farmer who understands the chemical de- 
compositions and combinations which go on in a heap of decaying manure or 
compost may use lime and wood ashes with safety and with advantage. 
With regard to the common mixture of ashes, hen manure, and plaster, too, 
this may be safely and beneficially made at the time it is to be used, but not 
if it is to remain mixed for any considerable time previously. 

Salt as a Manure. — Since soda, if essential in plant growth, is only re- 
quired in small amounts, and chlorine, though essential for most plants, is 
still required in only small amounts, and common salt is found in minute 
quantity in most soda, chemists have asked why salt should be of any benefit 
as a manure, and from theoretical grounds have been disposed to deny that 
salt has any value as a manure. Yet practical farmers, not having the fear 



FERTILIZERS. 65 

of science before their eyes, have pointed to the increased crops, and asked, 
" How is that ? " 

There can be no conflict between practice and science, because science is 
the classified explanation of practice. I have said enough to show that it is 
not enough to cause the rejection of a substance as manure to say that it is 
not " essential " to plant growth. 

Let us see what explanation can be made of the use of salt in agriculture 
beyond the small amount required for the ash element. 

Professor May showed that solution of salt would render soluble the am- 
monia which had entered into insoluble condition in the soil. 

Professor Atwater, in a recent report says: " Something has been said 
about the use of ordinary salt as a fertilizer. *One important office of the salt 
is to make soluble, and consequently useful in the plant, the materials al- 
ready locked up, as it were, in the soil. Supposing you have been putting on 
barnyard manure and other fertilizers. Some of the nutritive materials, as, 
for instance, potash and phosphoric acid, may perhaps have been taken up 
by the soil, and remain there in a difficult soluble condition. Furthermore, 
there are in the soil some of these ingredients that were in the original rock 
of wliich the soil is made up, and are still, so to say, locked up, or, in other 
Avords, still remain in an insoluble form therein. One effect of salt, as is the 
case oftentimes with gypsum and lime, is to set loose that potash as phos- 
phoric acid. You must expect, therefore, in putting on salt, that its chief 
use will be, not as a direct nutriment to the plant, but rather as a means of 
setting other materials loose; and salt is very useful on this account, because 
it is not readily observed in the lapper layers of the soil, but often leaches 
through into the layers; and it will have the effect of setting these materials 
free all the way down. 

" The German farmers say, however, that you must be careful in the use 
of salt. If you put on too much it injures the vegetation. Further, it will 
not do to put on loose soil. A very loose, sandy soil is not ordinarily bene- 
fited by the application of salt. Again, it is best applied to soils which con- 
tain considerable humus. And, finally, it should be used on soils which are 
in pretty fair condition as regards the contest of fertilizing elements. On 
soils which are not too loose, which have a good amount of humus, and 
which are in pretty fair condition as regards the amount of fertilizing ma- 
terial, organic and inorganic, contained in them, it is oftentimes a good thing 
to apply salt." 

Refuse Salt as a Fertilizer—A Wisconsin farmer writes: I have used 
salt as a fertilizer for the last three years with good success, and I also find 
that where I have sown 200 pounds per acre the previous year my crops are 
much better than where I sowed salt in the spring of the same year. We 
have better crops in this county than in any other county in the State of Wis- 
consin, and produced by the use of salt. Farmers who at first could not be- 
lieve that salt is good for anything are the most firm believers in it to-day. 
Those who sowed salt last year will sow double, and those who did not sow 
are going to sow next spring. 

I sow the refuse salt fi-om the packing houses. I have just finished 
drawing 22,000 pounds home to sow on^my own farm. I shall try it on my 
winter wheat this week at the rate of 300 pounds to the acre. I have spread 
2 1-2 tons on an acre, but plowed and worked it up with the soil for a turnip 
crop or for barley. It cost only 50 cents per ton, which made it a cheap fer- 
tilizer. It is used very liberally in England, where I came from. Many 



66 THE FARM. 

people have a wrong impression about salt. They think when they salt 
cattle and sheep that salt kills the grass, but this is not so. The stock kills 
it by eating the ground where the salt was put down. I will admit that salt 
will kill most plants, and would like to find some one who would pay for 
enough for me to try the experiment. 

I hold that in the West land needs salt as much as cattle do. The first 
time I tried it was on a twenty-acre lot sowed with spring wheat. In two 
weeks I could see the difterence between what I sowed with salt and that 
which had received no salt, and I could also see the difterence when 
harvested. The part sowed with salt had no chinch bugs, while on the 
other, which had no salt, I could gather up a quart to every sheaf the reaper 
threw oft". I have never seen any damage done by chinch bugs where there 
had been two hundred pounds of salt sowed broadcast on the crop. The 
time for sowing is when the grain is about four inches liigh. I have sowed 
salt when the grain was coming out in head, and with good results, but 
would prefer to sow it earlier. 

I prefer packing salt because it contains more or less grease and fat, be- 
sides blood from the meat, wliich is the essence of manure. Let farmers try 
the experiment, if only on a small piece, and not wait for some one else. 
Wheat yielded from twenty to thirty-five bushels per acre where salt was 
sowed, and where it was not sowed the wheat was not worth the cutting. 
Most of those who did cut it got nothing but No. 4 wheat, weighing fifty-one 
and fifty-tAVO pounds to the bushel. 

Formulas for Commercial Fertilizers. — A writer in the Fruit 
Recorder says: To produce a crop of wheat over what the natural yiekl 
would be Avithout manure, I use about two hundred pounds sulphate of 
ammonia, one hundred pounds ground bones, forty pounds oil of vitriol, 
fifty pounds of muriate of potash, forty pounds sulphate of soda, one hundred 
and seventy pounds land plaster. 

For Indian corn, to produce about thirty bushels shelled per acre, over 
natural yield: one hundred pounds of ground bones, forty pounds oil of 
vitriol, one hundred and fifty pounds sulphate of ammonia, one hundred and 
twenty-five pounds muriate of potash, high grade or eighty per cent., thirty- 
five pounds sulphate of soda, one hundred and twenty pounds land plaster. 

For oats, to produce about thirty bushels over natural yield; One hun- 
dred and fifty pounds sulphate of ammonia, fifty pounds ground bones, 
twenty pounds oil of vitriol, fifty pounds muriate of potash (high grade), 
thirty pounds sulphate of soda, one hundred pounds land plaster. 

For cabbage, to produce fourteen or fifteen tons (^'er natural yield: 
Three hundi'ed and fifty pounds muriate of potash (high grade), four hun- 
dred pounds sulphate of ammonia, two hundred and fifty pounds ground 
bones, one hundred pounds oU of vitriol, fifty pounds sulphate of soda, two 
hundred pounds of land plaster. 

For potatoes, to produce over two hundred bushels over natural yield: 
Five hundred and fifty pounds sulphate of potash, two hundred pounds 
sulphate of ammonia, one hundred pounds ground bones, forty pounds oil 
of vitriol, one hundred and twenty pounds land plaster, forty pounds sul- 
phate of soda. 

For onions, to produce about four hundred bushels over natural yield: 
Two hundred and twenty pounds sulphate of ammonia, one hundred and 
fifty pounds ground bones, sixty pounds oil of vitriol, two hundred and fifty 
pounds sulphate of potash, one hundred and twenty pounds land plaster. 



PEHTlLIZKn^. eT 

Por rutabagas, to produce ten to eleven tons over the natural yield: One 
hundred pounds ground bones, forty pounds oil of vitriol, two hundred and 
seventy-five pounds sulphate of ammonia, six hundred pounds sulphate of 
potash, one hundred and fifty pounds land plaster, thirty-five pounds sul- 
phate of soda. 

The above formulas are given in quantities for one acre of each kind of 
crops. , 

It requires one hundred pounds oil of vitriol to dissolve forty pounds 
ground bones. Put the ground bones into a water-tight plank box and soak 
the bone with water for two or three days, turning on about twenty-five 
pounds of water to each one hundred pounds of bone; then turn on your oil 
of vitriol and stir it thoroughly Mith a wooden stick, two or three times a day 
for five or six days, then mix in the sulphate of ammonia, next the muriate 
of potash and sulphate of soda, and lastly the land plaster; thoroughly mix 
the whole mass together. To 4ry it otf and make it fit to handle, incor- 
porate dry muck, fine charcoal or sawdust, but do not use lime or wood 
ashes as a dryer. Sometimes farmers can collect bones on their own or 
neighboring farms, or get them very cheap from a butcher, in this c*se they 
want to mash them up fine with a sledge, and about sixty pounds oil of 
vitriol used to one hundred pounds of coarse bones. 

Fertilizers vii. Plant Food. — The Farmer\s Magazine and Patroii's 
Guide says: Experiments are becoming continually reported by farmers 
that are misunderstood, and lead to conclusions, on the part of lAie experi- 
menters at least, that are detrimental to agricultural progress. Take an 
example now before us, that of a farmer who used lime, superphosphate, 
guano, salt, a chemical fertilizer, and no manure, on as many j)lot8 of wheat. 
The yield in each case was good, varying from twelve bushels on the unma- 
nured to twenty-six to thirty-five bushels for the manured plots. The lime 
gave the greatest apparent prq/i/ per acre, though the jield was not so large 
as where guano, chemical and supei*phosphates were used. Reasoning ffoni 
the figures alone, this experimenter thinks he has a guide for future prac- 
tice in wheat farming, and accordingly has now put seventy acres in winter 
wheat manured only Avith lime. 

We shall be interested to learn the result of several years of this practice, 
but predict that it will prove an unprofitable venture. The soil on which 
this experiment was tried is naturally fertile clay wheat soil. Lime on such 
land always has a good effect for one or two applications— not as plant food, 
however, but in acting upon the soil chemically to make available that 
fertility wliich is contained in the soil, but in an unavailable condition. Lime 
adds no element to the soil, but forces it to yield up its stores of fertility. It 
should not be understood from this that lime is not plant food, for it is; but 
the great majority of soils, if not all, contain so much of it already that there 
is no necessity for supplying more. This lime, however, is in such a form 
that it does not have the effect upon the soil of newly applied freshly slaked 
lime. 

It is a wise economy to utilize whatever of fei-tility the soil contains, but 
it must be done judiciously and not wastefully. So soon as it is found that 
the application of lime no longer produces adequate crops, the true reason 
should be assigned to the result, and that reason is that the supply of plant 
food is being exhausted, and outside, sources must be called upon to make 
up the deficiency. 

It is legitimate and proper to draw upon our bank account, but 



68 THE FARM. 

we must also deposit, or there will soon be nothing in the bank to draw 
from. 

Making Our Own. Fertilizers. — A Virginia farmer writes: Having 
studied the subject of fertilizing our lands when it is impossible to manure 
with stable manure, and watched the effects on different kinds of land, I 
have come to the conclusion that when commercial fertilizers are honestly 
made it pays, even at the low*price of grain, to buy and uee them on grain 
lands, especially when being seeded down to grass, and Avhen the land is 
too thin to make a set of grass a certainty. My experience has been that the 
money will be returned out of the gain. The set of grass will be always im- 
proved; the benefit \d\\ be felt while the land is in grass, and there will be 
a much heavier sod to turn under when the land is broken up. Now if it 
pays to purchase these fertilizex-s at from $25 to $90 per ton, besides paying 
freight on them and hauhng them from the depot, how much better it would 
be for us if we could manufacture our fertilizers at home at one-fourth the 
cost! I once heard a gentleman, who had had years of experience in this 
line, say that pure Peruvian guano, even at $90 to $100 per ton, is the cheap- 
est of all fertilizers. Now, unless I am mistaken, Peruvian guano is simply 
rotted bird manure, and must have lost some of its strength by being exposed 
to the air and sun. I suppose the birds that made this guano fed on bugs, 
fish, wild seeds, etc. We thus have one ingredient at least equal to the best 
fertilizer known, right on our farms, and one that can be vastly increased 
with very small additional expense. It is certainly of vast importance to the 
farmer to see that the flock of fowls is kept up, and see that not one ounce of 
manure is wasted. 

Another thing is the hog manure. Tliis is certainly a splendirl fertilizer, 
and should be saved with the utmost care. I have known farmers to build 
their hog pens on a hillside leading to a branch to let the hogs get water, 
and thereby lose nearly all their manure. It may not be equal to Peruvian 
guano, but it is certainly half as good. Another valuable fertilizer is wasted 
on nine-tenths of all the farms in the country. This is the night soil, and 
everything that comes from the house— the liquid manures are as strong as 
the soUds. My plan is to save all these things; pulverizing and making 
them into a real genuine fertiUzer that can be drilled, handled, or used as 
are commercial fertilizers. Sink in your yard a vat that will hold two hundred 
bushels. (If one is not enough, you can sink another.) It should be well 
made out of two-inch oak planks, and have a lid with a good handle, so the 
wash-woman can lift the lid and pour her soap suds into it as easy as 
pouiing it elsewhere, and where the chamber-maid should be required 
always to put into it everything in her line. Now add all the hen manure 
you can get; all the night soil, and a load or two of the best hog manure. 
Then add muck, loam or plaster enough to absorb all gases and stop all 
smell, so as to make it perfectly inoffensive. When the box is nearly 
full, add (if there is not enough already) enough liquid to make the 
mass mix easily, and with a long pole thoroughly mix, and keep 
stirring for several days, so as to reduce' all lumps. You can then 
remove all sticks, cobs, etc., that may have found their way into 
it, with a coarse sieve fastened on a long pole. When thoroughly 
mixed and sifted, allow it to dry out, and if not dry enough when 
you want to use, spread it on boards and dry thoroughly. This fer- 
tilizer can be made at a small cost per ton, and will be found to do 
good work. 



PjERTlLlZEItS. 69 

Honie-Made vs. Commercial 3Iaiiures. — A correspondent of the Kem 
Etigland Homeslead writes: The great body of common farmers will never 
profitably develop their agricultural resources or to any great extent increase 
the fertility of their farms until they keep or fatten more cattle and sheep. 
And the way to keep more stock is, to keep it without more ado— just as our 
wise financier remarked that the way to resume specie payments was to re- 
sume. 

Notwithstanding the legislation for the protection of the honest manufac- 
turer as well as the purchaser, the common farmer feels that in buying 
many vai-ieties of commercial manures he is not master of the situation. 
This is why I advise farmers to keep stock or make their fertilizers upon 
their own farms as much as possible— to buy animal food rather than plant 
food. For horned cattle as a rule, buy firm cotton-seed meal, corn meal, 
fodder corn or corn fodder and swale hay. In purchasing food for other 
kinds of stock, we must be guided by their varied conditions, always feed- 
ing such kinds and quantities as will be kindly relished and thoroughly di- 
gested. 

For several years I have boiight twenty-five cords of stable manure an- 
nually. A large proportion comes from Boston and costs me eight dollars 
per cord delivered on my farm. Yet I consider it as cheap as any fertiUzer 
in the market. , In a cord of good manure free from foreign substances, we 
get the results of about two tons of hay together with the grain fed, less the 
animal waste or growth. If judiciously appHed, the ground that receives 
the manure will in a number of years yield its full equivalent with interest. 
If plant food is to be bought, buy first good stable manure, fine ground bone, 
good hard wood ashes, and muriate of potash. When the honest manufac- 
turer will sell these elements compounded as cheaply as the farmer can 
purchase and compound them himself, it may do to buy still more largely 
of commercial or chemical fertihzers. And in their application we must no 
longer work blindly. 

Use of Plaster and Aslies.— Henry Ives, one of the best farmers in far- 
famed Western New York, writes thus sensibly to the Tribune: "To use 
plaster on any of our growing crops requires so slight a cast and so often 
proves beneficial, that one can hardly aftbrd to neglect its application, al- 
though occasionally no pei'ceptible advantage is derived from it, and, at 
best, we scarcely look for benefit except for the one season and the one crop. 
But in using ashes we are more sure of benefit, and its good efi"ects are so 
lasting that after one Uberal application, say of from 50 to 100 bushels per 
acre (though if leached ashes are used one could safely apply three to six 
times this quantity), the effect will show for five, ten, or even fifteen years, 
by increasing fertility. When applying plaster to corn, or plaster and guano, 
phosphate or hen manure, oi* even with a small quantity of ashes (in all 
cases from 100 to 200 weight to the aci-e is enough of the plaster) , the in- 
gredients should be prepared and well mixed on the barn floor, loaded into 
an open wagon, so as to have it along convenient to the work, and almost 
any time in the early growth of the corn apply a small handful to each hill, 
not as some do, by throwing it carelessly in a compact heap near to the hill, 
but as it is thrown sift through the fingers, giving it an even distribution all 
about the hill. But after the com is a Httle more advanced I believe it 
would do it more good, and without costing much if any more, to use two or 
three times as much of the fertilizing mixture, sowing it broadcast over the 
field. If, instead, the fanner could apply 60 or 80 bushels of ashes to the 



70 THE PARM. 

acre, it should be done before i^lanting or seeding, so as to be well mixed 
with the soil when preparing it for the seed-bed. This, I believe, is the 
most lasting of any kind of fertilizer, and one of the cheapest, too, when the 
ashes can be obtained without costing more than 25 or 30 centa a bushel. 
After such an application of ashes, or other fertilizer, or manure, it is still 
just as desirable as ever to plaster the corn growing on such fertilized land." 

Experience witli Muck; — A correspondent of the Country Gentleman 
gives his experience with muck as follows: As the attention of farmers is 
drawn to the necessity of enriching their farms, I will give the result of sev- 
eral years' experience with muck. My practice has been as follows: In the 
fall, when the muck beds are dry, I throw out into piles as much as I think 
I need for the coming year. At some convenient time I draw a quantity near 
the house, where I can throw on it the soap suds fi-om washing, night soil, 
scrapings from the hen house, and leached or unleached ashes. I generally 
commence this compost heap in the fall, but if any one would commence in 
the spring he would make a much larger amount. 

In the spring I shovel over the pile once or twice; then it is ready for use. 
This manure I use in the hill foa- all hoed crops, as phosphate is used. I 
consider it far ahead of barnyard manure in the hill, and equal to phos- 
phates, for the nature of manure is to dry up, while the nature of muck is to 
attract moisture. It is about one day's work for a man to put this into one 
acre of corn or potatoes, putting a good handfid in each hill. I have foiind 
that this manure contains an alkali, or something, so that birds and crows 
will not pull corn, and wire-worms will not eat the roots of corn. White 
grubs will not gnaw potatoes that are planted in it. It makes a corn crop 
ripen about one week or ten days earlier than Avithout it. I have known 
fanners to pay 50 cents a load for muck to make compost from to be used on 
tobacco, and they thought it paid them well. 

I have noticed that the first crop does not use up all the strength of one 
application. It can be seen in the next crop. It does not hurt seed corn or 
potatoes to be dropped into this compost, they will grow better than in com- 
mon earth. This compost heap has some advantages over phosphate. It 
does not cost any money if one has a muck bed, and it will keep insects 
away fi'om the roots of cx'ops. I have drawn and mixed barnyard manure 
and miick in piles during the A^inter, in the pr«portion of two of manure to 
one of miick, and I consider it better than raw manure from the yard for any 
crop. 

Wliat a Pint of Maiittre Did._A Wisconsin farmer sends this experi- 
ence to ih& American Agricnltxirist: "Last year, in hauling yard manure 
across a field afterwards planted to corn, some of it scattered off in driblets, 
fi-om a handful to a pint or so in a place. When planting the corn, I found 
portions of these dropjiings, and where noticed, drew them into the hills, 
and with the hoe mixed ihem a httle with the soil as the seed was dropped. 
In three instances, Avhere a large handful or about a pint of the manure was 
thus put in, a stick was di'iven down to mark the hills. When hoeing, we 
noticed that in these hills the corn plants had started off more vigorously, 
were greener, and at the third hoeing they Avere six to twelve inches higher 
than the other hills adjoining. Our curiosity being awakened, we followed 
up the observations, and when gathering the crop each of the three stalks in 
all the three hills had on it two large plump ears, while the surrounding 
corn did not average one good ear to the stalk. 

" This set us to thinking and figuring. That bit of manure had given th-e 



FEJiTlLlZEES. 71 

yoiiug corn roots a vigorous start, just as good feed starts off a young calf, 
or pig, or lamb, aud the roots penetrated further in every direction and 
gathered more food and moisture. These stalks being better nourished 
from beloAv, ran far away from the poorly fed neighbors. As to the figiares, 
the roAvs were three and one-half feet apart, and the hills three feet distant 
in the rows, say four thousand hills on an acre, aud four thousand pints of 
manure is about sixty-two and one-half bushels, or two large wagon loads. 
Anybody can reckon the diflerence betAveen six large, well-tilled ears of 
corn on each hill, and less three per hill, and the cost of the manure as com- 
pared with the total value of the final crop. The ploAving, and the seed, and 
the hoeing, amount to the same in each case. All I have to say is, that 
every corn-hill planted on my farm this year will have at least a pint of 
manure in it." 

HoTV to Double tlie Usual Q,uaiitity of Mamii'e on tlie Farm. — 

Provide a good supply of black swamp mold or loam from the woods, within 
easy reach of your stable, and place a layer of this, one foot thick, under 
each horse, with litter as usual on top of the loam or mold. Kemove the 
droppings of the animals every day, but let the loam remain for two weeks, 
then remove it, mixing it with the other manure, and replace with fresh 
mold. By this simple means any farmer can double not only the quantity 
but also the quality of his manure, and never feel himself one penny the 
poorer by the trouble or expense incurred, while the fertilizing value of the 
ingredients absorbed and saved by the loam can scarcely be estimated. 

Josiah Qiiinc}^, Jr., has been very successful in keeping cattle in stables 
the year through, and feeding them by means of soiling. The amount of 
manure thus made had enabled him to improve the fertility of a poor farm 
of one hundred acres, so that in twenty years the hay crop had increased 
from tAventy to three hundred tons. The cattle are kept in a Avell-arranged 
stable, and are let out into the yard an hour or two mornings and afternoons, 
but they generally appear glad to return to their quarters. By this process, 
one acre enables him to support three or four coavs. They are fed on grass, 
green oats, corn fodder, barley, etc., Avhich are soAvn at intervals through 
the spring and summer months, to be cut as required; but he remarks that 
liis most valuable crop is his manure crop. Each coav produces three and a 
half cords of solid, and three cords of liquid manure, or six and a half cords 
in all. Five to eight miles from Boston, such manure is Avorth from five to 
eight dollars a cord. From this estimate, he has come to the conclusion that 
a cow's manure may be made as valuable as her milk. 

Advantages' of Slielteriiig Maixwre.—Many farmers alloAV the manure 
made by their stock of cattle to be thrown out doors, Avhere it remains 
exposed in heaps or in the yard for several months. The rains fall upon it, 
and streams of black water laden with the soluble and valuable elements of 
the manure run away from the manure heap during every heavy rain, the 
sun burns it, and the Avinds dry it, the volatile gases escape and are lost. In 
this AA'ay a large part of the plant food contained in the manure is lost. That 
a serious loss is thus occasioned has been proved by experiment. A Scotch 
farmer and land-owner shoAved by experiment that covered manure increased 
the productiveness of his land enough the first year he used it to pay the 
cost of rough sheds put up to protect it. Four acres of good land were 
measured off ; two of them were manured AA'ith ordinary barnyard manure, 
and the other tAvo Avith an equal quantity of manure from the covered shed. 
Tlie whole Avas planted to potatoes, The two acres manured with barnyarci 



72 THE FARM. 

manure, which had been exposed to the weather, yielded five hundred and 
sixty-four bushels of potatoes, while the other two acres manured with 
covered manure, yielded nine hundred and thirteen bushels, or four hun- 
dred and fifty-one bushels more than the other. The increased efl'ect of the 
covered manure did not cease with the' first year. The next year both plots 
were sown with wheat, and from the two acres dressed with the barnyard 
manure ninety biishels of wheat were harvested, wbile from the two acres 
dressed -with the covered manure, one hundred and eight biashels of wheat 
were obtained. These facts show the importance of protecting the barn 
manure from the weather. 

The Fertility of Soils. — The fertility of a soil depends not alone on its 
composition. A proper mechanical te"ture is essential. On the texture of 
soils depends not only their suitableness for the growth of different crops, 
but likewise the rapidity of their growth. It is the texture, also, which 
regulates to a just extent the soil's power of absorbing and retaining heat, 
moisture and manure. 

To be fertile the soil must be firm enough to aftbrd a proper degree of 
support to the growing plants, and yet loose enough to allow the dehcate 
fibres of the rootlets to extend themselves in all directions. It must be 
loose enough to allow free access of air and suitable drainage, and at the 
same time close enough to retain sufficient moisture. 

Unless there be a sufficiently free passage for the rain throughout the 
substance of the soil the plant food will not be properly prepared, nor the 
stationary roots of plants be fed. 

The fertiUty of a soil is also dependent on the cnmate in which it lies. 
Local conditions as to rainfall, temperature, etc., must be considered in 
estimating the value of soils. They may be the same in composition and 
texture and yet difier widely in value. The amount of rain, the season of its 
descent determine largely the value of the soil of localities for agriculture. 

The temperature of the air in any given locality has an important bearing 
upon the productiveness of the soil, whatever may be its composition and 
texture and the amoiyit of rainfall. 

Crreeii Maimres. — I have never yet been able to make as much barn- 
yard manure as I wanted, writes a Southern fanner, and commercial fer- 
tilizers are dangerous things to come in contact with a farmer's pocket, so 
I touch them lightly; then what is the next best resort? Green manures. 
In the fall of 1882, I determined to try rye as a fall crop, and I sowed a 
tAventy-tive acre lot in it, and the following May I plowed it under, when 
fully headed, and sowed black peas, one bushel per acre (having used the 
same quantity of rye) . We had a nice pea fallow, and plowed them under 
about the first of October, and sowed wheat in the latter part of October, 
1883. Last year we cut the wheat, and though it had the rust very badly, 
we made between twelve and fifteen bushels per acre. The growth of the 
straw Avas very fine, and I am confident Ave would have made from tAventy 
to thirty bushels per acre but for the rust, on laud that would not, "before 
these green fallows, have made ten bushels of Avheat. I now beUeve you 
may groAV wheat on the same lauds every year by following each crop with a 
pea-fallow, along with ten bushels of lime per acre, applied when the peas are 
falloAved in. We did not apply any lime on our fallow, as the land had 
been limed a few years before with fifty bushels per acre. I verily believe 
the lands can be ci'opped, as above stated, and constantly improved. We 
should never buy peas to sow but once, and thus saA'e oui* seed each year, 



FERTILIZERS. 73 

even if you have to sow a separate lot for that purpose. I have tried peas 
as a fallow crop for the past three years, and find them the best and cheap- 
est substitute for barn-yard manures that the poor land farmer can find. 
They are good to sow on the corn lauds, at the last working iu June, and 
fallow in when the corn is cut off in October; and I have been told, by some 
old farmers, that they will improve the land just as much if left until the 
frost kill them, and then fallow, as Avhen fallowed under green. If all 
farmers would use every means in thek power to feed and improve their 
lands, we would soon have a different country from the present. 

Bone Dust for Top Di-es.sing — In reply to a correspondent who asks if 
bone dust would not make a good dressing for grass land to be applied in 
the fall, the American AgrlcuUarist says: " We think it would be better to 
compost the bone dust with yard manure and then apply the compost. If 
six or eight cords of this fine compost were appUed to the acre it would only 
fux-nish a good dressing of itself, which the land would be the better for, 
would act as a sort of mulch or protection for grass roots, and if the soil was 
at all inclined to 'heave,' it would be a positive benefit. But our corre- 
spondent must remember that the disadvantage of iising bone dust or 
ground bone alone, as a fertilizer, is the fact oi its slow action. The ni- 
trogen and phosphoric acid which the bones contain is very slowly rendered 
available for plants, on account of their insoluble nature; bxit where the 
bone dust is added to yard or barn manure as a compost, the bones cause 
the mass to ferment somewhat, and the heat engendered hberates the phos- 
phoric acid and nitrogen, which is absorbed by the manure and given out 
more quickly to plants when brought in contact with them. Good practice 
and the last scientific authorities have united in recommending this as the 
best treatment for ground bone and the best manner of its appUcation to 
plants. Fifty pounds of ground bone to a cord of manure would be sufii- 
cient." 

Liiquid Manure for hardening — It is well known that the liquid ma- 
nure of animals is more valuable than the solids. In all densely populated 
countries all these are carefully saved and carried direct to the fields, or 
stored in tanks for future use. 

In the West, and indeed all over the United States, but little attention is 
paid to the liquid wastes of the stables and yards. This has given rise to 
the saying that " the leaks in the stable^re not in the roof." The point is, 
that it 'costs but little more in building a stable to provide drainage through 
which the liquid manure may safely be carried to a tank or a tight-bottomed 
pond in the yard, than it does to leave the whole without drainage, to rot the 
foundations and saturate the soil beneath. Once conveyed to the place of 
deposit, it may be pumped to the manure pile, or carried direct to the 
garden, the meadow, or fields, where it will pay for the labor expended, 
ten-fold. 

For the garden it is especially valuable, for here the chief expense is in 
the cultivation. It costs no more to cultivate an acre of thoroughly enriched 
land than an acre of poor land; in fact, not so much, for on rich soil the 
vegetation will quickly cover the gi'ound, and thus smother the weeds, 
while on poorer soil the weeds continue to grow during the whole summer. 
If no other convenience be at hand, a hogshead may be placed in the wagon, 
having an orifice at the bottom, to which a hose may be attached, and thus 
the land may be watered on either side as the team passes through the cen- 
tral drive, which every garden should have for convenience in hauling in 



74 THE FARM. 

aud hauling out manure, trash and produce. If this be not feasible, on ac- 
count of the small size of the garden, a can with a flat spout, or even largo 
buckets to which a flat poiiring place is added, will be speedy and efficient. 

Gardeners well know the value of manure, and especially of liquid ma- 
nure. They spare no pains or price to get all they can, and often apply from 
20 to 40 loads of compost or decomposed manure per acre, annually. It is 
what makes or mars the profit in gardening.' The result of the gardener's 
experience may be easily learned by any farmer who reads, if indeed, it be 
not so devoted to impractical matter that the jiroper talent in tliis direction 
is not retained. It is just this that makes the difterence in the value of any 
technical journal. If it spread over too much ground, it is efficient in no- 
thing. Just so with the individual. If he engage in three or four separate 
callings, some of them must sufter. The field of agricultiire is broad 
enough, and in this field there is none more important than the proper 
saving and application of manure, and especially so in the vegetable gar- 
den which no farmer. hoAvever few his acres, can aflbrd to be without, es- 
pecially if he have due regard for the health of his family. 

, Application of Fertilizers. — Kecent experiments have demonstrated 
that whei-e the appUcation of superphosphates to the soil has produced no 
effect, the cause was to be attributed to a sufficiency of those salts already 
existing therein. Where 2 cwts. soil contain less than 3 1-2 ounces of phos- 
phoric acid, the superphosphate will prove beneficial. When it contains 5 
ounces of phosjDhoric acid, the addition of the salt will turn out to be useless. 
It follows from this that, contrary to the received opinion, it is not necessary 
to apply nitrates mixed Avith the phosphates, when the latter are present in 
the soil. M. Paguoul continues his interesting experiments as to the solu- 
bility of phosphates by di\erse agents. He conclusively proves that stable, 
indeed, we may add barn-yard manure, will dissolve natural phosphates in 
the powdered state, and thus economize the expensive superphosphates. 

A Patent Fertilizer AVliicli Aiiyljocly May Use. — This invention re- 
lates to a combination of chemicals to be used in connection with dry peat, 
or muck and unleached ashes, or with any refuse matter having fertilizing 
properties, to form a fertilizing compound; and it consists in combining dis- 
solved bone, ground plaster, nitrate of soda, sulphate of soda and sulphate 
of ammonia, in proportion substantially as follows: 

Dissolved bone, three bushels; ground plaster, three bushels; nitrate of 
soda, forty pounds; sulphate of soda, forty pounds; and sulphate of am- 
monia, thirty-three pounds. This mixture is incorporated with, say, twenty 
bushels of dry peat or muck, and three bushels of unleached ashes. 

The manner of preparing a fertilizing compound from the above ingredi- 
ents is as follows: The peat or muck and ashes, if such matter be used as 
the base of the mixture, are thoroughly mixed with the dissolved bone, and 
the nitrate of soda, sulphate of soda, and sulphate of ammonia, after being 
dissolved in water, added thereto. The ingredients are next incorporated 
with the ground plaster, after which the compound is allowed to stand for, 
say, thirty or forty days, when it becomes ready for use. 

The Work of Potasli.-Ipotash is a fertihzing element whose restora- 
tion to the soil is indispensable, as it is carried off by crops in considerable 
proportions. This restitution becomes the more imperative when plants of 
the leguminous family, such as clover, disappear, to be replaced by mass. 
Unwashed wood ashes, containing six to eight per cent, of potash, and three 



to four of phosphoric acid, ofteu produce marvelous eflfects; the mass dis- 
appears, and the clover aud similar plants take its place. 

M. Rimpeau, at Schlanstedt, Saxony, aud Prince William, at Schaum- 
bourg, have been occupied with the influence of potash on the production of 
sugar in beets. After the bedding Avas cleaned h\ the morning, the boards 
were strewn with one cwt. of kainite and one-half cwt. of gypsum, per two 
tons of soiled bedding; the latter, on being removed, was allowed to steep in 
putrid wine, and in time ai^plied at the rate of eleven tons per acre, to a 
marly soil. The manure, enriched with kainite, produced a slight augmen- 
tation in yield of roots, over the gypsum combination. The salient fact 
elucidated by Prince William on his estate in Bohemia is, that chloride of 
potassium exercises no essential action in humid years, while in dxy seasons 
one and a half cwt. per acre secures an increase of three tons of roots per 
acre; that the salt of potash acts less by furnishing that element to vegeta- 
tion, than by its absorbing and retaining humidity for the plant. 

Asliejj in Hie Coiupost. — When ashes are used in combination Avith 
stable manure, the latter is decomposed too rapidly, but if immediately ap- 
plied to the land there is no waste, or if covered with loam, the component 
parts are rendered more soluble and the maniire acts Avith greater rapidity. 
If the liquid excrement from the cows is mixed Avith the manure, sufficient 
soluble matter is thereby supplied for a first crop, and Avhile the ci'op is 
groAving and maturing, the solid manure has been decomposing and prepar- 
ing for another crop; or, it may be said, the liquid manure Avill give the 
yoimg plant a quick start, while afterwards the solid part Avill aid in finishing 
the crop. Ashes do not act so quickly on hen manure as on stable manure, 
since the former is much di'yer; consequently decomposition does not take 
place immediately. If applied soon after composting, the compound Avill 
giA^e good results, but if allowed to remain too long after composting, the 
ammonia Avill be lost to some extent. If the compost be covered with fresh 
loam, there will be no loss, since the loam will absorb the ammonia. 

HoAv to Keep and Spread Manures. — It seems to be conclusively 
settled in Europe that by far the best Avay to keep manure is to let it remain 
under the animals all Avinter, acciimulating to a depth of several feet under 
them, and absorbing all the urine. When thus tramped doAvn fii^-mly it 
ncA'er heats, and is fully one-fourth stronger than when jiiled out doors ex- 
posed to the Sim and rain, both of Avhich injure it greatly. The animals are 
kept clean by abundant applications of leaves, loose straAV, etc., for beds. 

Mr. Gregory, the great Marblehead seedsman, pronounces night soil or 
priA'y manure to be fully fifty per cent, stronger than that of animals. It is 
too strong to apply separately and requires to be decomposed AAdth stable 
manure to get the best results. In China, Japan and East, all human manure 
is carefully saved. There it is carried about in buckets, and is very highly 
prized as a vahiable article. In this country it is recklessly throAvn away 
and wast*?d, being treated as a nuisance. In no possible manner can the fer- 
tility of lands be so kept up as by saAang all the excrement from men and 
animals, voided after eating their food, and returning it to the soil from 
which it came. 

Value of Home-Made Man.ure._Of manures, that of the coav is the 
poorest, that of the horse being double in value, and that of the hog five 
times that of the horse. Hen manure, mixed with tAVO or three times its OAvn 
bulk of muck, or even loam, is as good as most guano kept for sale. Ashes, 



76 THE FARM. 

leached or unleacbed, are excellent. The contents of the closet may be kept 
inodorous, and in an easily workable condition, by casting plaster on them 
frequently until removed, and then by adding four times as much more of 
muck or loam, you will have a fertilizer equal to poudrette. Bones, old 
boots and shoes, hogs' bi'istles, and all old scraps, which would otherwise 
lie about as nuisances and eyesores to all who see them, may be made solu- 
ble and fit for fertilizing by burying them in unleacbed ashes, -with an occa- 
sional slight watering and stirring of the heap, and addition of ashes, until 
reduced to a proper state for piilverizing. The pig should be supplied with 
all the weeds you can gather before they seed, and peat, muck, turf, etc., if 
thrown into his yard, he will work over, and pay for his keeping by largely 
increasing the amount of manure. He will work over ten or twelve loads if 
given to him. 

Clover as a Fertilizer. — A stick of Wood burned on the surface mostly 
passes off in gas, lea\ing only the ashes; but the same stick if burned in a 
coal-pit, excluded from the air, forms a mass of carbon of nearly or quite its 
original si^e. Now all decay of vegetable matter is a slow combustion, and 
when tliis is done under the soil, uot only the gases retained in the soil, but 
laore carbon is fonned, and this carbon has the power to appropriate the 
valuable gases always present in the atmosphere. The great value of clover 
as a fertilizer is due, first to the carbon furnished by the decay of the plant, 
and second to the fine mechanical effect on the soil, which renders it porous, 
so that the atm(*Ji)hore penetrates it and deposits plant food. It is clear that 
better fertilizing effects will result from tlie plowing down of the crop to 
decay in the soil. Ordinarily moi-e can be made out of the tops than they are 
worth for manure, and if rightly niftnagod, the roots will supply the needed 
fertility. 

Home-iuade Snperpliospliate. — A Western journal remarks that 
almost eveiy farmer has upon his own premises one of the best superphos- 
phate maniires known. The elements are found in the old bones, scattered 
carelessly over yard, garden and farm, and common wood ashes, generally 
allowed to go to waste. If the liones are gathered, placed under shelter, 
thoroughly mixed with three or four times their bulk of ashes, kept moist 
with water enough to make a good lye and occasionally stirred and mixed, 
they will, in a few months, become so tender and friable that they may be 
pounded into powder, and in this state they form a valiiable manure, better 
than the average of the commercial fertilizers that seem so expensive. The 
ashes, of course, should be mixed with the bones. The fertilizer thus made 
should be applied by the handful in the hill of corn, and its effects may be 
early seen in the deep, rich green of the growing plant. This may seem like 
small business to a farmer who has but little spare time, but it is l)y just such 
economy that our best farms become so profitable, and it is by lack of such 
economy that so many farms fail to yield even a comfortable living. 

Soap Siifls. — The value of this article as a stimulant of vegetable life can- 
not be too highly appreciated. It contains the aliment of plants in a state of 
ready solution, and when applied, acts not only with immediate and obvious 
effect, but with a sustained energy wliich pertains to few even of the most 
concentrated manures. When it is not convenient — the most economical 
method, perhaps, of using it — it should be absorbed by materials which may 
be used as an ingredient in the compost heap. Suds, muck, and other 
similar articles, should be deposited where the suds from the sink and 



FEETILIZEUS. 11 

laundry cau 6ud its way to them and be absorbed for the benefit of the cMops. 
In this "vvay several loads of manure, suitable for the support and suste- 
nance of any crop, may be made at comparatively small expense. The 
highly putrescent character of this fermentable liquid qualifies it admirably 
for the irrigation of compost heaps of whatever material composed. Being a 
potent fertiHzer, it must of course impart additional richness to almost any 
material to which it may be added. Try it, and mark the result. 

Manure for Almost Nothing. — If you have any dead animal — say, for 
instance, the body of a dead horse — do not suffer it to pollute the atmos- 
phere by drawing it away to the woods or any other out-of-the-way place, 
but remove it a short distance only from your premises, and put down four 
or five loads of muck or sods, place the carcass thereon, and sprinkle it over 
Avith quicklime, and cover over immediately with sods or mold suificient to 
make, with what had been previously added, twenty good wagonloads, and 
you will have within twelve months a pile of manure worth twenty dollars for 
any crop you choose to put it upon. Use a proportionate quantity of mold 
for smaller animals, but never less than twenty good wagon-loads for a 
horse; and if any dogs manifest too great a regard for the enclosed carcass, 
shoot them on the spot. 

Poultry Manure — Fifty fowls will make, in their roosting house alone, 
ten cwt. per annum of the best manure in the world. Hence fifty fowls will 
make more than enough manure for an acre of land, seven cwt, of guano be- 
ing the usual quantity aj^plied per acre, and poultry manure being even 
richer than guano in ammonia and fertilizing salts. No other stock will 
give an equal return in this way; and these figures demand careful atten- 
tention from the large farmer. The manure, before using, should be mixed 
with twice its bulk of earth, and then allowed to stand in a heap, covered 
with a few inches of earth, till decomposed throughout, when it makes the 
very best manure which can be had. 

An Experiment with Aslies— An experiment made with five wagon 
loads of coal ashes on twenty square rods of ground may be cited as an in- 
stance of beneficial mechanical effects. The amount of ashes was about two 
hundred bushels, that is to say, ten bushels to the rod. They wei"e drawn 
on late in the fall, the ground having been recently plowed. In the spring, 
the ground was plowed again, thus mixing the ashes with the soil. It was 
then planted with garden stuffs. All the plants made more growth than in 
the previous year, when the groimd, after being liberally manured, was 
planted to the same crops. But the favorable change was not attributable 
to manurial properties in the coal ashes. Before the appUcation the soil 
Avas compact and heavy, a fault that the ashes corrected, and without doubt 
this Avas practically the sole effect. 

Peter Henderson on Fertilizers. — Peter Henderson says that the best 
known fertilizers of commerce are Peruvian guano and bone dust. What- 
ever kind of concentrated fertilizer is used, he finds it Avell repays the labor 
to prepare it as follows before it is applied to the land: To every bushel of 
guano or bone dust add three bushels of leaf mold, well pulverized dry 
miick, yard scrapings, well decomposed stable matter, or, if neither of these 
can be obtained, any loamy soil, but in every case the mateiial mixed with 
the fertilizer must be fairly dry, as it is used as a temporary absorbent for 
the fertilizer. 



18 THE FARM. 

Top-Dressiiig— Some farmers think that top-dressing with manure is 
best done during the winter. In the fall the manure, unless very fine and 
evenly spread, will cover up injuriously much of the plant. When spread 
in winter, on the contrary, it acts as a mulch and a protection while the 
plant is dormant, neutralizing the effects of fx-eezing and thawing. An au- 
thority on the subject advises that artificial fertilizers be spread on grain* 
lands in the fall, and barnyard manure after the snow comes. 

Improving Liiglit Soil. — The best way to improve a light sandy soil is 
to put on all the vegetable matter you can, either in the form of muck from 
swamps, or by turning under peas, buckwheat, clover, or some similar crop. 
If the land is very poroiis, more or less of the fertilizing materials a^jplied 
will sink out of the reach of ordinaiy crops. Your main point is to get the 
land full of A'egetable matter, not only to increase its fertility, but to make it 
hold moisture in summer. 

Liquid Manure—The liquid voidings of animals are worth more (good 
authoiities say one-sixth more), pound for pound, than the solid excrements, 
and are saved with greater care by the best European farmers and gar- 
deners. All the leaks in the stable are not in the roof; those often in the 
floor are quite as objectionable, and are the cause of a great deal of wastage. 
Make the stable lioor tight, with a gutter at the heels of the stock to carry it 
off to an adjacent tank, or into a heap of muck or other absorbent. 

Saving Pertilixers. — One of the most prevalent errors among average 
farmers is the neglect of making and preserving manure, and also its im- 
proper application to the ground. Collect all the refuse material you can, 
use your chip dirt from the wood pile in absorbing liqiiids. Apply it to the 
flat lands at any time during winter. It can then be thrown on broadcast 
and plowed in as soon as the ground ojDeus. The necessity of returning as 
miich vegetable nutriment to the ground as has been taken ofl' by the crop 
cannot be too strongly impressed upon the attention of our farmers. 

Ho-»v to Apply Manure. — The old plan of plowing under manure has 
pretty much been abandoned by many farmers as wasteful. Advanced 
farming believes and teaches that the intimate and thorough incorporation 
of the fertilizing principle, into that portion of the soil which is to be occu- 
pied immediately by roots of the growing crop, is a truth taught by experi- 
ence on all soils, and in all climates, and the more evenly and thoroughly 
this is done the more surely will the crop be satisfactory. 

Spreading Manure. — An English writer says: " The wasteful practice 
of spreading manure on surface of the soil, and allowing it to lie bleaching 
for weeks, and even months before being plowed in, is still carried on in 
some counties in England, and stoutly defended by hosts of clay land 
farmers," and he expresses the oi^inion that "if the perpetrators of such 
an enormity be right, science is at fault, analysis is an illusion, and am- 
monia and all its kindred a family of impostors." 

Mixing Manure in AVinter — When teams are not otherwise employed 
in the winter it is a good plan to draw the pile of horse manure around 
horse stables and spread it over the heaps of cattle and sheep excrement. 
The manure of the horse and the cow especially are admirable supplements 
each to the other, that from the horse being naturally too active and that 
from the cow too slow. Enough bedding should be placed under horses to 
absorb all their liquid excrement, so that none be wasted. 



FERTILIZERS. 79 

Home-Macle Guano. — Save all your fowl manure from sun and rain. 
To prepare it for use, spread a layer of dry qwamp muck (the blacker it is 
the better) on your barn floor, and dump on it the whole of your fowl ma- 
nure; beat it into a tine powder with the back of your spade; this done, add 
hard wood ashes and plaster of Paris, so that the compound shall be com- 
posed of the following proportions: Dried muck, four bushels; fowl manure, 
two bushels; ashes, one bushel; plaster, one and one-half bushels. Mix 
thoroughly, and spare no labor; for, in this matter, th<i eflfort expended will 
be well paid for. A little before planting, moisten the heap with water, or, 
better still, with urine; cover well over Avith old mats, and let it lie till 
wanted for use. Apply it to beans, corn, or potatoes, at the rate of a hand- 
ful to a hill; and mix with the soil before dropping the seed. This will be 
found the best substitute for guano ever invented, and may be depended on 
for bringing great crops of turnips, corn, potatoes, etc. 

Materials for Compost. — lu several of the States compost heap may be 
made of muck or earth for a basis; to this maybe added leaves, cotton-seed, 
ashes, gympsum, night soil, stable manure, trash from the fields (except 
weeds in seed), and all the slops from the houses and cabins. If desired, 
bone-dust may be added, but the fine artificial fertilizers will be better, if 
used by themselves. 

Value of Vegetable Substances. — The tops of turnips, potatoes, beets, 
carrots and parsnips are very valuable and should not go to waste. Those 
of the beets are rich in nitrogen, while potato tops contain a large proportion 
of potash. All of them contain both in more or less quantity. They rot 
quickly, and should be added to the compost heap when unfit for other pur- 
poses. 

Facts Regarding Fertilizers—The raising of thirty bushels of wheat 
to the acre will remove from the land fifty-one pounds of nitrogen, twenty- 
four pounds of phosphoric acid and thirty-nine pounds of potash. This can 
be replaced by sixty pounds of sulphate of ammonia, 171 pounds of super- 
phosphate of lime, and seventy-seven pounds of chloride of potassium. 

Alternating Manure.—Market gardeners find it profitable to alternate 
stable with other manures rather than use the same kind continuously on 
the same land. Farmers can take a hint from th^s. Perhaps one reason 
why phosphates have been so largely successful has been because the sta- 
ble manures previously used have been deficient in phosphoric acid. 

How to Use Hen Manure._The manure from the poultry house is 
valuable for any crop. It may be spread on grass very thinly, about two 
barrels per acre being enough. One Avay to get it fine is to spread it on the 
barn floor and thrash it with a flail, but a wet cloth should be tied around 
the mouth or nose while this is being done. 

Nitrogen for Potatoes — Potatoes need nitrogen and potash. Fresh 
manures applied in spring increase the liability of disease. We believe po- 
tatoes can be raised profitably with chemicals, when farmers will experi- 
ment at home and learn how to buy just what is needed and nothing more. 

Nitrate of Soda for Wheat. — An authority avers that an application of 
100 pounds of nitrate of soda to an acre of wheat, when the crop looks weak, 
Avill show its benefit in a few days, not only improving it in growth, but 
largely increasing the vield, 



80 THE FARM. 

Combining Aslies and Bones. — Doctor Nichols gives the following 
exact figures of the quantities used in reducing bones with ashes: Break 
one hundred pounds of bones into small fragments and pack them in a tight 
cask or box with one hundred pounds of good wood ashes, which have been 
previously mixed with twenty-five pounds of dry, water-slaked lime, and 
twelve pounds of powdered sal soda. Twenty gallons of water will saturate 
the mass, and more may be added as required. In #wo or three weeks the 
bones will be soft enough to turn out on the barn floor and be mixed with 
two bushels of good soil. We should jirefer road dust to the soil. 

Fertilizers a Good Investment. — Farmers Avho have money at com- 
mand cannot easily put it in a more profitable investment than judicious 
outlay on their land. A careful use of good manure repays the expenditure, 
even during the course of many years, and draining wet land is estimated 
to return from forty to eighty per cent, on the yearly cost. In the same way 
good stock x^ays far better than poor; good fencing, well selected fruit trees, 
carefully looked-after homesteads, all repay the money laid out, and, be- 
sides all that, add immensely to the comfort of the occupier. 

Top-Dressing in Winter. — Some farmers think that top-dressing with 
manure is best done during the winter. In the fall the manure, unless very 
fine and evenly spread, will cover up injuriously much of the plant. When 
spread in winter, on the contrary, it acts as a mulch and a protection while 
the plant is dormant, neutralizing the effects of freezing and thawing. An 
authority on the subject advises that artificial fertiUzers be spread on grain 
lands in the fall, and barnyard manure after the snow comes. 

A Crood Garden Mannre. — The manure produced by sawdust when 
used as a'bedding for horses, is said to be a better fertihzer for certain gar- 
den crops than any other. When mixed with the soil in which celery is 
grown it is said to greatly benefit those plants. 

A Useful Hint. — Coal ashes, scattered on the stable floor, will absorb 
the liquid manure, prevent the cattle from slipping and falling, afford an 
excellent addition to the pickings of poultry around the place, and can after- 
wards be spread on the soil. 

Salt and Plaster on Lawns. — A dressing of salt and plaster on newly 
made lawns Avill result* in great benefit to the young grass roots, making 
them strong and hardy for wintering over. 

Bran as a Fertilizer. — It is said by those who have tried it, that bran 
is as good as the best commercial fertilizers for potatoes and corn, and much 
cheaper. 



THE GARDEN. 



Saving Seeds. — lu saving seeds only the best specimens of each kind 
should be saved, and all interior ones rejected; this is easy enough with such 
plants as squashes, cucumbers, tomatoes, melons, etc., care being used to 
save only the earliest, fairest, and most perfect specimens. The seed should 
be allowed to ripen thoroughly befoi'e taking it from the fruit, which will re- 
quire some weeks with squashes, after gathering from the vine; tomatoes 
are placed in the Bxin for a few days, and melon-seeds may be taken directly 
when the melon is fit to eat; seeds of this nature having a fleshy pulp are 
usually cleaned by allowing them to ferment in water for a day or two, when 
the pulp will easily wash off, after which the seed is spread upon a sheet in 
the sunshine to dry. Seeds of vines keep longer if not allowed to freeze; 
they will preserve their vitality five or six years if kept in a warm, dry place. 
A closet near a chimney is a good place, and, since mice and rats are fond of 
such tidbits as melon-seeds, it will be advisable to lock them up in a tin 
chest or other rat-proof arrangement. When saving seeds of beets, cabbage, 
turnip, etc., those who are most particular reject all but the seed grown on 
the leading stem. Beet-seed is cleaned by threshing, sifting, and picking 
over to get out the sticks; it varies much in size, and should be separated 
by a sieve, in order to have it run evenly through the seed drill, for it is the 
most troubleson e of all seed to sow evenly. Perhaps some inventor will 
discover a method of shelling out best seeds, so that they can be sown evenly; 
if this could be done, one of the chief items of labor in raising beets would 
be greatly lightened, and a saving of more than half the seed would be 
effected also; for the beet-seed as now sown is a pod containing two to five 
seeds each, and is so rough and uneven in shape as to give much trouble to 
sow it evenly with a drill; in fact, to insure a good stand, very heavy seed- 
ing and laborious thinning are essential. If the pod could be crushed and 
the seed shelled out, it could then bo drilled in as evenly as any other seed. 
Seeds of all kinds keep best in a dry, even temperature. When to be kept 
in large lots, they may be put in bags and hung fi-om the ceiling of the room, 
to keep them from the mice. Most seeds are good from two to five years, if 
carefully kept; onion-seed, however, is very inferior after the first year, and 
worthless after the second. When old seed is to be used, it should be previ- 
ously tested by sowing a counted lot in a hot-bed or other suitable place, 
and counting the number of plants that come up, and noting the vigor of the 
plants; the plants from old seed are usually less vigorous than from fresh 
seed, and sometimes are so weak as to be worthless. 

Tlie Best Garden Vegetables. — The following is an extract from an 
essay on "Market Gardening," read before the American Nurserymen's 
Association, at Dayton, 0.: Within the past dozen years many important ad- 
vances have been made in earliness and in quality of vegetables. Among 
beets we have the Egyptian, which matures at least five days ahead of any 
other variety, except the Old Bassano, which was too light in color to suit; 
in cabbages, the Early Summer; and in cauliflower, the Snowball; in celery, 



8^ THM PAttM, 

the Golden Dwarf; and the next season is likely to develop a great improve- 
ment in the Nfew White Walnut celery— a stont, solid kind, having a rich, 
walnut-like flavor, and graceful feather-like foliage. In lettuce, the black- 
seeded Simpson and the White Summer Cabbage lettuce now lead all the 
out-door varieties. In muskmelons, the Hackensack, of which many thou- 
sand acres are grown for the New York market, is almost exclusively planted. 
In peas, a great improvement is developed in the dwarf variety known as 
American Wonder, though for general early crop the improved Dan O'Kourke 
is best. Potatoes vary so much in different localities that it is difficult to 
say which of the new sorts are most valvied; we find, however, that in our 
general trade more of Beauty of Hebron is planted than any other of the new 
sorts. In radishes, the Round Dark Red is now the main favorite, while 
next in order comes Wliite Tipped Turnip. In spinach, the Savoy and the 
new Thick-Leaved are the best for general crop, though we find that the 
Savoy should not be sown in spring, as it runs too quickly to seed. Though 
every year brings out new claimants for favor in tomatoes, it is my convic- 
tion that we have not advanced one day in eai'liness, unless in such varieties 
as Key's Prolific and Little Gem (which are of poor quality), in twenty-five 
years, although we have now many varieties somewhat improved in quaHty. 
The varieties now most popular ^vith New York market gardeners are Acme 
and Paragon, thoiigh, from the unusual advertising given to Trophy, the 
general cultivation of that is greater than any other; but, as it is usually 
found now, it is far inferior to many others, besides being one of the latest. 

Rotation of Garden Crops. — Have you not frequently noticed that 
some men change. their garden spots every few years ? If you ask them why 
they do so, they will tell you that vegetables don't seem to do well there 
after a few years' cropping. 

In starting a garden on an ordinary piece of ground, which has not before 
been used for this purpose, two or three years are required to get it pul- 
verized and enriched sufficiently to produce a first-class crop, hence the 
necessity for retaining the same piece of ground for garden purposes. This can 
be done by adopting a proper system of rotation. It is a good plan to make 
a diagram of the plot used for a garden, and have it marked ofi" into divisions 
of suitable proportions for the vegetables required. Each division should be 
numbered, or, what is just as good, the name of the vegetable raised there 
written upon it. These diagrams drawn each year should be carefully pre- 
served, so that, by referring to them, one could ascertain jiist Avhat had been 
raised on each particular division for years back, and by this means keep up 
a systematic rotation. 

For convenience, the garden-plot should be long and narrow, thus 
enabling a horse cultivator to be used to advantage. I have noticed that 
most gardens are nearly square in form, but have never yet been given a 
good reason for this. 

A garden 8x20 rods in size can be cultivated with a horse at less expense 
and with less work than a garden 3x4 rods can be worked by hand, as gar- 
dens of this size usually are. 

Such garden vegetables as rhubarb, asparagus, and others of a like kind, 
requiring two or more yeai-s to reach the proper bearing condition, should, 
of course, be given a permanent place for several seasons; but they, too, 
need removing about once in four years, in order to get the best possible re- 
sults. They should never be so located as to interfere with the cultivation 
of other vegetables. 



rilE GARDEN. 83 

Many gardenerB put these plants among their small fruits, but they are 
as much in the way there as anywhere in the vegetable garden. They will 
not do so Avell, and are also a heavy drain on the soil, causing an injury to 
the bushes about them. The best way is to give them one of the long, nar- 
row divisions, above referred to, clear through the length of the garden. 

How to Make a Good Garden. — The soil must be well drained, 
either naturally or artificially. It must be rich; and the manure should be 
thoroughly worked into the soil. Plow the land in the autumn, and plow it 
again as early as possible in the spring. If there is any rubbish, remove it 
« )r dig holes and bury it below the reach of the plow. Then plow again, or 
work the land with a cultivator. I take oif some of the inside teeth of the 
cultivator, so that the horse can draw the cultivator as deep, or nearly as 
deep, as the land has been plowed. This work should be done when the 
soil is dry and the weather Avarm. You cannot possibly stir the soil too much 
Avhile the sun is shining. It lets in the sun's rays and Avarms and mellows 
the soil. On light, sandy soil, thoroughly and deeply plowed and manured 
the fall previous, there are many crops which can be sown to advantage 
without again plowing in the spring. It often happens in this latitude that 
five or six inches of the surface soil in the spring is thawed out and dry 
enough to work, Avhile underneath the ground is frozen solid. If we wait 
till this frozen soil can be plowed, we frequently lose a good opportunity for 
putting in early crops of peas, potatoes, onions, cabbage, lettuce, radish, 
spinach, etc. And besides, the soil that Ave turn up Avith the plow, atid 
Avhich comes to the surface, and in Avhich we soav the seed, is cold and damp, 
Avhile the surface soil Avhich Ave turn under is warm and dry. 

Transplanting. — Inexperienced gardeners are apt to think that a rainy 
day is the only fit time for setting out plants, and Avill often delay a week or 
tAvo longer than is necessary waiting for it, and finally plant AA^hen the ground 
is soaked and Avlien they sink to their ankles in the soil. That is the worst 
time that could possibly be chosen, excepting Avhen the ground is congealed 
Avith cold. For it is impossible that the mold, sticky and clammy while wet, 
can filter among the roots, or remain of suitable texture for them to spread 
themselves in, permeable to them and equally pervious to the air in every 
part Avithout anywhere exposing their tender parts to actual contact in 
chambers of corrosive oxygen. A rainy day is an advantage if the plants are 
set before the ground has become Avet, but the safe and sure way is to go for 
the plants as soon as the ground is fiilly prepared, no matter hoAv dry the 
Aveather. A pail or bucket should always be taken to carry the plants in, 
having a little Avater in the bottoiu. The roots being set in this Avill absorb 
until the plant is so gorged that it Avill endure a drying air after being set in 
place. If the ground is very dry, Avater should be poured in before plant- 
ing, which is very much better than pouring upon the surface, because of no 
injurious crust being formed, for a continually open surface diiring the 
growing season, to admit of free cii'culation of air and capillary action from 
below, is absolutely essential to free, profitable grqwth. 

Mushroom Culture. — Of all the edible mushrooms, the common 
Meadow Mushroom Mg'aricws edulis.) \q the Only one- adapted for culture, 
and, with proper care and management, it can be grown almost anywhere 
and at all seasons. Nowhere has the cultivation of this delicacy reached so 
iiigh a state of perfection as in the vicinity of Paris, in France, and the fol- 
Jowing description of the methods practiced there, given by Messrs. Vil- 



84 



TH£ FARM. 




morin-Andrieux, ■will, therefore, be of interest to those who contemplate 
mushroom culture: 

The chief conditions to obtain a satisfactory result consist in growing 
mushrooms in a very rich soil and under a genial, as nearly as possible even, 
temperature. To secure this latter condition, the culture is often carried on 
in cellars; but any other locality, such as 
sheds, out-houses, stables, railway arches, 
etc., will suit as well, provided that either 
naturally or by artificial means the tempera- 
ture does not exceed 86 degrees, nor fall lower 
than 50 degrees Fahr. 

The first thing to be considered after the 
choice of a convenient locality is the prepara- 
tion of the mushroom bed , The most essen- 
TUB. tial material being horse droppings, prefer- 

ence to be given to those of well-noiirished 
animals, collected as dry and as free from straw as possible. This ferment- 
ing material would be too hot to be used by itself at once; to reduce the 
strength it should be well mixed with one-fourth or one-fifth of its bulk of 
good garden soil, when the bed may be prepared immediately, the fermen- 
tation being slow and the heat produced only moderate and even. Care 
should be taken to construct the bed in a dry place, and to make the sides 
firm and tidy. If it is in- 
tended to use the horse- 
dung b y itself, as the 
mushroom growers around 
Paris do, it is necessary to 
allow the first heat to 
evaporate, which is done 
by piling the dro})piugs as 
they come from the stable 
in successive layers to the 
height of about three feet, 
in a dry spot, removing all 
foreign matter from it and 
pressing it into a compact 
mass, sprinkling with wa- 
ter such portions as are 
very dry. In this state it 
is to be left till the most 
violent fermentation has 
passed, which is generally 
the case in six to ten days, 
when the heap is to be re- 
made, taking care that 
those portions which were 
outside, and consequently 
less fermented, are placed inside, to insure an equal temperature. It should 
be well mixed and firmly placed, so that the whole may be of a similar 
texture. 

Generally, a few days aiter beicg remade, the fermentation is so strong as 
to render it necessary to be made up a tliird time. 

Sometimes, after the second operation, it is ready for the beds being 




MOVABLE BEDS AGAINST A WALL. 



THE (JARDEN. 



85 




BED WITH TWO SIDES PARTIALLY UNCOVEBED. 



made, which may be seen when the heating material has become brown> the 
straw which is mixed with it has lost almost entirely its consistence, when it 
has become greasy, and the smell is not longer the same as when fresh. It 
is difficult to obtain a good material without preparing a heap of at least three 
feet each way; and if that quantity is not required for making the beds, the 
surplus may with advantage be used in the kitclien-garden. 

The material is now brought to the place where the beds are to be made, 
which may be of any 
form and size; but 
experienc.e has 
shown that the best 
way to make use of 
space and material 
is to raise the beds 
to a height of from 
twenty to twenty- 
four inches, with a 
width of about the 
same at the founda- 
tion. An excessive 
rise of tke tempera- 
ture, in consequence 
of renewed fermen- 
tation, is to be less feared than when the beds are of larger dimensions. 
When a large place is at disposal, preference is given to beds with two slant- 
ing sides; when the beds are resting agarast a wall, and consequently pre- 
sent but one available side, the width ought to be less than the height. 

Barrels sawn in two, so that each part forms a tub, are well adapted to 
form beds, as Avell as simple shelves on which sugar-loaf-shaped beds may 
be raised, which, already formed, may be carried into Cellars, etc., where 
the introduction of the raw materials would be objectionable. 

^ _ The beds thus established 

should be left for a few days 
before spawning, to see 
whether the fermentation 
will not be renewed with ex- 
cessive vigor, which may be 
ascertained by the touch of 
the hand, but it is safer to 
use the thermometer; as long 
as the temperature exceeds 
86 degrees Fahr. the bed is 
too hot, and it should be al- 
lowed to cool by itself, or by making openings with a stick to allow the heat 
to escape. 

When the temperature remains at 76 degrees, it is time for spawning. 
Prepared spawn is found in the seed stores at all times, which may be kept 
without trouble from year to year. The spawn sold in France is not in 
bricks or sohd lumps, as in England, but in light masses of scarcely half- 
decomposed loose and dry litter. 

A few days before epawmng, it is advisable to expose the syawn to a 
moderately Warm moisture, which %Mill insure a safer and more rapid growth; 
it should be broken up in pieces about the len^h and thicknesa of "the haad 




MOVABLE SHELF. 



80 THE FARM. 

by half that width, and inserted into the bed at a distance of ten to twelve 
inches each way; on beds twenty to twenty-four inches in height, which are 
mostly in use, it should be inserted in two rows, dove-tail fashion. 

Where the bed is situated iu a place under cover and of an even temper- 
ature, nothing else is to be done but to wait for the growth; if, however, the 
bed is placed in the open air and exposed to change of the weather, it must 
be covered with long litter or hay to keep a uniform temperature all around 
the bed. 

Under favorable circumstances, and if the work has been done well, the 
spawn ought to show activity in seven or eight days; it is advisable to look 
to it, and to replace such spaAvn as might not thrive, which can be seen by 
the absence of white filaments in the surrounding materials. 

Fifteen to twenty days later the spawn ought to have taken possession of 
the whole bed and should come to the surface; the top and sides of the bed 
should then be covered with soil, for Avhich a light mold in preference to a 
heavy one should be used, slightly moistening it, without making it too wet. 
If it does not naturally contain saltpetre, it would be good to administer a 
small quantity of salt or saltpetre, or to give it a watering of liquid manure. 

The covering with soil should not exceed more than an inch in depth, 
and be pressed strongly so as to adhere firmly; watering should only be 
done where the soil becomes very dry. Where a covering has been re- 
nu)ved for some purpose it must be replaced at once. 

A few weeks after, according to the state of temperature, more or less, 
the mushrooms Avill appear. In gathering them care should be taken to fill 
the empty spaces with the same soil as used for the covering. Leaving the 
bed to itself, it will produce from two to three months; but its fertility may 
be prolonged by careful waterings at a temperature of 68 degrees to 86 de- 
grees Fahr., Avith an admixture of guano or saltpetre. 

By establishing under cover three or four beds annually in succession, a 
continued supply may be reckoned upon; besides, during the summer 
months, beds may be raised out-of-doors a^. very little expense, securing an 
abundant supply. Frames in which vegetables are forced may in the inter- 
vals be used for mushroom culture Avith very good results, providing the 
temperature be congenial, and that the yottng miishrooms are slightly pro- 
tected Avith soil as soon as they appear. — Tlte Americati Garden. 

Asparagus. — A Avriter in the Mdssdchusetts Floughmati says: I desire to 
impress upon the attention of our farmers the importance of using asparagus 
more largely as a luxury of the table. It is more rarely to be found in coun- 
try gardens than any other esculent, and Avhen found hard to take note of, 
as the plat is scarcely bigger than a door mat and furnishes about enough 
shoots for one square meal. When an expenditure of tAvo or three dollars 
Avill provide a bed Avhich Avill last tAventy or twenty-five years, and annually 
furnish one of the earliest and most delicious vegetables, it seems almost 
impossible to account for its being so much neglected by the farming com- 
munity. It is not only an appetizer and a luxury but a very valuable diure- 
tic, and especially beneficial to sedentaiy persons and all Avho are troubled 
AA'ith symptoms of gravel. Our best growers make a bunch of sixteen stalks 
Aveigh four pounds. Almost evei-y one who cultivates vegetables knows 
how to make an asparagus bed, but the opinions as to its after treatment 
are very discordant. For a private family the bed should not be less than 
five feet wide and twenty feet long. Dig out the ground two, or better, 
three feet deep, and fill up with chips, sawdust or sticks of wood packed 



close together five or six inches from the bottom. Put on this six inches of 
the strongest stable manure, and fill np to the top with manure and dirt, 
about half and half. The whole space need not be dug out at once, but the 
bed can be made in the usual mode of trenching. The roots may now be 
put in over the entire bed ten inches apart, or in single rows two feet apart, 
and ten inches plant from plant, and then covered with rich soil about three 
inches deep, and over the whole a peck of salt and a peck of ashes mixed to- 
gether, sown. , 

Asparagus, being a marine plant requiring salt and alkalies for fertilizers, 
needs in most localities an annual supply of these materials, thoiigh culti- 
vators living within the influence of the sea -coast say they can find no bene- 
fit in using salt. The beds, of course, are to be kept clean at all times, and 
an abundant supply of liquid manure from the stable or washroom during 
the summer will bo found the best method of manuring. The ordinary 
method of after culture in this coitntry is to let the stalks grow until Novem- 
ber, then cut them down. Cover the bed with coarse manure, and in the 
spring fork it in. In France the stems are cut down to about thirteen inches. 
In England they do as we, cutting down to the ground, but uncovering the 
stools, so as to leave on only a very slight covering of soil. Now, for small 
gardens in which asparagus is grown for family use, I doubt the propriety of 
cutting down the stalks in the fall, and consider it the best plan to let them 
^tand until spring, and then put on the bed all the old pea-brush or other 
loose dry material, and burn them and the stalks together, and the ashes 
will furnish all the manure required, and the bed go on improving indefi- 
nitely. The practice of the Romans was to "burn the haulm in its own 
X)lace." And later authorities say, "Cut the dry tops close early in the 
spring, spread and burn them evenly on the grou^nd, hoe and rake the beds 
over, and you will have large crops for twenty-five years." Not far from my 
residence is an asparagus-bed which the present owner, now an octogenarian, 
helped make more than half a century ago. The only manuring it has re- 
ceived for the latter half that period is the annual spring burning of the 
stalks and refuse material on the bed, and it is not only vigorous, but im- 
proving, sending up new shoots to fill the vacant places occasioned by too 
late cutting. If this practice works well in Bei'kshire, where the frost de- 
scends to the depth of several feet, and asparagus-beds are not injured, 
though covered with nothing but the haulms, during such a winter as last, 
when the white mantle of snow was wanting, it would seem to be adapted to 
any chmate. 

The greatest injury to beds of asparagus is cutting too late. Cut all the 
shoots at a suitable age up to the 20th of June. Always cut below the sur- 
face. In Spain, previously to the cutting, the bed is covered lightly with 
dead leaves to the depth of about six or eight inches, and the cutting does 
not commence till the plants peep through this covering. In France the 
cultivators form over each stool a conical lump of soil, like a large mole-hill, 
ten to twelve inches high, in early spring or soon as the ground is dry, and 
the asparagus is gathered when it pushes an inch or two above the hills. In 
the climate of Paris the cutting is never prolonged beyond the middle of 
June. The experience of nearly all who grow this vegetable is, that if some 
shoots are not allowed to go to seed, the plants will soon become weakened, 
and die. 

Celery. — Our manner of treating ^the celery crop of late years is very 
muclvsimplified, says Mr. Peter Henderson. Instead of sowing the seed in 



gS ^BE FARM. 

a hot-bed or cold frame, as practiced in Europe, it is sown in the opeii 
ground, as soon as it is fit to work, in April, and kept carefully clear of 
weeds until the time of planting, in June and July. In our warmer climate, 
if raised in hot-beds, as in England, a majority of the plants would run to 
seed. The tops are shorn off once or twice before planting, so as to insure 
"stocky" plants, which suffer less on being transplanted. 

After the ground has been nicely prepared, hues are struck out on the 
level surface, three feet apart, and the plants set six inches apart in rows. 
K the weather is dry at the time of planting, great care should be taken that 
the roots are properly "firmed." Our custom is to turn back on the row, 
and press by the side of each plant gently with the foot. This compacts the 
soil, and partially excludes the air from the roots until new rootlets are 
formed, which will usually be in forty-eight hours, after which all danger is 
over. This practice of pn-ssiug the soil closely ai'ound the roots is essential 
iu planting of all kinds, aud millions of plants are annually destroyed by its 
omission. After the planting of the celery is completed, nothing further is 
to be done for six or seven weeks, except running through between the rows 
with the ciiltivator or hoe, and freeing the plants of weeds, until they get 
strong enough to crowd them down. This will bring us to about the middle 
of August, by which time we have usually that moist and cold atmosphere 
essential to the growth of celerj'. Then we begin the " earthing up " neces- 
sary for the blanching and whitening of that which is wanted for use during 
the months of September, October, and November. The fii'st operation is 
that of "handling," as we term it; that is, after all the soil has been drawn 
up against the plant Avith the hoe, it is further drawn close around each 
plant by the hand, firm enough to keep the leaves in an upright position and 
prevent them from spreading. This being done, more soil is drawn against 
the row (either by the plow or hoe, as circumstances require), so as to keep 
the plant in this upright position. The blanching process must, however, 
be finished by the spade, which is done by digging the soil from between the 
rows, and banking it up clear to the top on each side of the row of celen,'. 
Three feet is ample distance between the dwarf varieties, but when larger 
sorts are used the width of the rows must be at least four and a half or five 
feet. 

An Easy Method of BlancUing Celery. — The common and laborious 
process of earthing up and winter storage of celery is doubtless a great ob- 
stacle in the way of its culture by many busy farmers. The Country Gerdle- 
tnnn suggests this easy method of blanching, which does away altogether 
with the necessity of trenches or banking, at least for moderate supplies: 
"If intended for winter blanching, about the middle of November they are 
taken up on a dry day and placed in water-tight troughs or other vessels iu 
a quite dark cellar, the plants standing erect and closely together. Enough 
water is poured on the roots to cover them, and the supply is continued 
through the winter as it evaporates. This constitutes the entire labor. The 
stalks are gradually and handsomely blanched in the darkness, and many 
new ones spring up during the winter months, especially if the apartment is 
not very cold, and these new shoots are remarkable for their delicacy an(3 
perfect freedom from any particle of rust, appearing like polished ivoiy. A 
small separate apartment in the cellar, without windows, answers well for 
this purpose. Boxes, tubs, or any vessels Avhich will hold a few inches of 
water may be employed. The plants, as grown in the open ground, need 
not be earthed up at all, or they may be slightly earthed to bring them into 



THK nAr.DEf. 89 

a move compact form, if desired. Probably the best way would be to adopt 
the ceurse which is sometimes employed of setting out the plants in summer 
on the level surface of deep, rich soil, eight or ten inches or a foot apart each 
way, in order that their close groAvth may tend to give them a more upright 
form. They are merely kept clean by hoeing through the season. 

Catiliflo-wer.—The growing of cauliflowers is receiving more attention 
than formerly, particularly so the earlier varieties. The crops of Dwarf 
Erfurt and Snowball begin to come forward in June, and these, with the 
later sorts, are in market almost without intermission until November. 
Cauhflowers requii*e very liigli cultivation, even more so than cabbages, and 
plenty of moisture. Whether grown in the kitchen garden or upon a large 
scale, the crop is a paying one. The demand is evidently rapidly increasing, 
and there is no more delicious vegetable grown. 

Cold-frame plants are probably the best and hardiest for early crops; the 
frames, however, need rather more protection during cold nights than is re- 
quired for cabbage plants. Seeds sown in hot-beds in February will pro- 
duce plants that are not much, if any, inferior to cold-frame plants. They 
should be transplanted out once before setting in the open ground, and also 
should be gradually hardened by exposure; in this way they may be in con- 
dition to set out as early in April as the ground will permit. Set the early 
sorts about two feet by fifteen inches, and cultivate the same as cabbages. 
Where irrigation is jpracticable, great advantage is thus obtained during a 
drought. 

For late cauliflowers, sow seed in open ground, from the middle of May 
till the middle of June, in hills, the same as directed for late cabbages. 
Thin to one plant in each hill; this avoids the drawbacks resulting from 
transplanting in a dry time. When the plants first appear, they are liable to 
the attacks of a small black fly; guard against this by frequent dusting with 
plaster, which apply in the morning, while the dew is on. When the heads 
are forming, tie the leaves together at the top, thus avoiding discoloration by 
exposure to the sun. 

Tomato Culture. — Perhaps no other garden vegetable, says a com- 
petent authority, has grown more or faster in public favor than the tomato. 
It is one of the most profitable garden crops, if cultivated right and got iuto 
the market early, I have made tomato culture a special study for the last 
six or seven years, endeavoring to grow the best and earliest tomatoes. 
T would get all the new varieties I could to test, cultivating them in the best 
way according to my knowledge and judgment to make the vines produce 
the earliest and nearest perfect fruit. I will give the mode of cultivating 
that I have found to be the best and most profitable way as yet. 

Start the plants in a hot-bed; sow the seeds in a box large enough to hold 
the required number of plants wanted; sow in this box in rows one or two 
inches apart the seeds thick, and insert in the hot-bed up to the top. When 
the plants have four or six leaves, transplant in another hot-bed four inches 
apart. Notice that the beds are the same or near the same temperature. 
The transplanting is done to give the plants more room and give them abun- 
dance of roote. The plants should be hardened by taking oft" all cover, or 
if sash is used raise them of a warm, clear day. When all danger of frost is 
past, transplant to the open ground. Break the ground deep and work it 
mellow, mixing with the soil all the manure that can be spared from other 
crops, for the richer the soil, if it is warm, the better. Mark off the rows 
five feet apart; put one or two shovelfuls of rich, well-rotted manure every 



§0 THE FARM. 

three feet in the rows, working it well with the soil, and set the plant some 
deeper than it was in the bed. Before taking the plants np, wet the bed 
thoroughly, and take np as much soil with the plant as you can. Set in cloudy 
weather, if you can, if the weather is warm. The least check the plants re- 
ceive the better. As soon as they start to grow, begin to cultivate them. 
Cultivate the balk or space between the rows, deep and thoroughly, raking 
the ground level. Cultivate every three days, if the weather will admit. 
Kemember, tillage is eorliness! Tillage is manure. 

As soon as the laterals or suckers appear keep them off. At the second or 
third cultivation top-dress the ground with hen manure and work it in the 
soil. If you have but little hen manure, just piit it around the hills. Keep 
the vines nicely and well tied up to stakes. As soon as the fi-uit begins to 
form, go through the vines and keep all imperfect, deformed fruit off and all 
laterals. Sell by the number, three to five cents each. Sell to the consumer; 
they are the ones to appreciate nice fruit, and vnll pay for it too. 

As soon as the fruit is grown let the suckers alone; they will give you 
fruit later. Varieties — Perfection, Paragon; or Acme is very nice, but I pre- 
fer the two first. 

Tx-aiiviiig Tomato Plants. — There is no doubt that a greater quantity 
of desirable fruit is obtained when the branches of each tomato plant are 
elevated on brush or frames, as the fruit is by this means exposed to sun and 
air; oftentimes only one stake is employed; any arrangement that brings 
about the required exposure and keeps the fruit from the groiind will serve 
a good purpose. 

The maturity of the first fruit that seta may be greatly accelerated by 
piuching off the extremities of the tops and the surrounding shoots that 
appear. A good rule is to stop side shoots at the first blossom. 

A novel method of training the tomato plant appeared in a report of the 
Maine Pomological Society. Stakes seven or eight feet long were inserted in 
the ground the last of May, three feet apart, in a warm, sheltered location, 
and strong tomato plants were procured, which had been started under a 
glass and contained one or two blossom buds. These were planted near the 
stakes. The plant was then tied to the stake with listing, and all the side 
branches which had pushed at the axillar or angles formed by the separation 
of the leaves, were pinched or cut out with scissors, so as to compel the plant 
to grow on a single stem; and every week during the season, these branches 
were removed, and the stems, from time to time, were tied to the stake. 
When a sufficient number of clusters had been formed, the remainder were 
removed, so as to concentrate the whole energies of the plant to the growth 
and ripening of the remaining tomatoes; and the heavier branches were sup- 
ported by tying them to the stakes. It was claimed for this method that the 
ripening of the fruit was not only hastened, but its size increased. 

Liate Tomatoes. —To raise late tomatoes a good plan is to stick into each 
watermelon hill a tomato plant. They do not interfere with the former, 
and come in after the garden crop gives out. Those coming in late are the 
best for canning and putting up for winter use. 

Onion Gro-wing. — A successful gardener writes: Let me say to those 
who, by reason of repeated failures, have become discouraged, and aban- 
doned the growing of onions, that if they will put the following directions in 
practice they will be astonished at the result. One of the most important 
and first considerations is the soil, for it is of no more use to try on unsuit- 



THE GARDEN. 91 

able soil than it is to " spit against the -svind," and if you attempt it you will 
only " get your labor for your pains." Illie soil must be eleau, rich, and 
light, not a gravelly kind, or one so dry as to suffer from drouth— sandy 
loam is the best. Next, the ground should be heavily salted, and this well 
worked in before soAving. The sowing should be done in April, and as early 
in the month as possible; " delay is dangerous." With a heavy roller, or 
the feet, or in some way, the ground in which the seeds lie should be pi-essed 
down quite hard. "Weeding should be attended to as soon as you can safely 
do so, and as often as the grass (which is the only weed that Avill be likely 
to appear if the ground has been heavily salted) appears and is large 
enough to pull (the smaller the better), being careful not to throw earth 
upon the onions in any way or at any time during their growth. FoUoav 
these rules, and if weather favors, success is certain, and the weather must 
be quite unusual to cause failure. The tops should be left on the bed or 
held to rot, or to spade or plow in; and onions improve by being grown on 
the same ground year after year. While I believe it to be better to work the 
soil up fine for the reception of the seed, and after sowing to press the 
ground down hard upon the seed, yet I have known very good crops grown 
by making a groove or furrow with a sharp instrument in itnplowed ground, 
covering the seed with the earth thrown out by the process, pressing it down, 
a heavy coat of manure having been applied as a top dressing the fall be- 
fore, and raked or burnt off before sowing. Top dressing is a good practice 
for onions, whether the land is plowed or not. Plow shallow if you plow 
at all. 

A Ne^v Metliocl of Raising Onions. — A neAV method of onion-growing 
is strongly recommended by a French horticulturist. Some of the seedlings 
in the original bed should be left standing at iutervals of about a couple of 
inches, and the spaces between them caused by the removal of the rest, 
filled in Avith good garden mold mixed Avith pigeon's dung, or ordinary 
faeces. The beds must be kept Avell watered, and it is said the resulting 
crop AA^ll astonish the groAver. 

Kleepiiig Winter Squaslie^. — Many farmers are at a loss to knoAV hoAV 
some are successful in keeping their squashes in good condition, until May 
or June, while they lose most of theirs before the end of February; they 
usually attribute their Avaut of success to causes beyond their control, Avhen 
a careful investigation Avould shoAv that mismanagement Avas the principal 
cause. Squashes to keep Avell must, first, be Avell ripened; second, they 
should be gathered before heavy frosts come; third, should be Avell dried; 
fourth^ the shell should be Avell glazed over, and while it need not be thick 
it should be hard; fifth, they should be kept Avhere the temperature is very 
even, never very cold, or very hot; sixth, in handling, great care should be 
taken not to bruise them; this is of the highest importance. Many farmers 
leave their squashes out until the frost kills the vmes; the squashes are 
thus left exposed to the cold Avinds, and they are frequently left until it is 
cold enough to freeze water, and change the color of the tops of the 
squashes; this is fatal to their good keeping. Others, Avhen they find that 
cold weather has come, hurry them in just as night sets in, and in their 
haste to get them under cover, they load them into the wagon as though 
they were stones; thus bruising nine out of every ten to a degree that causes 
them to rot by ThanksgiAdng time. 

Squashes are often stored in the barn, in one heap, until they get chilled, 
when they are carried into a Avarm, damp cellar, Avhere they soon rot, and 



92 THE FA M ¥. 

the owner is at a loss to know the reason. When stored in heaps, if the 
storehouse be dry, the under squashes will send out moisture in such quan- 
tities as to keep the whole heap surrounded by moisture. Squashes to keep 
well, *ould not only be kept in a dry atmosphere ^^•ith a very even tempera- 
ture, but they should be spread on the floor, or on shelves, so that the air 
can easily pass between them. 

All of the sett shell and unripe squashes should be disposed of as soon 
,18 possible after they are harvested, and only the hard shell and perfectly 
ripe ones should be kept for winter; crookueck squashes keep best Avith 
most people; the reason probably is, they are ripe and are handled Avith 
care, and are xisVially hiTng up in a dry place. The same treatment of mar- 
row squashes w^ould no doubt secure A^ery satisfactory results. 

Sqiiasli CiiKiire, — A successful raiser of squashes says he manages in 
this way: I dig holes as deep as I conveniently can Avith a hoe, six feet apart, 
close by the side of early peas or potatoes. As soon as the Aveather will per- 
mit I stamp a AvheelbarroAv of uufermeuted manure in each hole, pour in a 
pail of Avatcr, and haul over the manure six inches of eart^i, being careful 
that the hill is no higher than the surrounding surface. Plant ten or 
tAveh'e seeds in each hill; Avhen they begin to run, thin to two vines in each 
lull. The potatoes Avill be tit for family use before the squashes begin to 
run, and can be dug ahead of them, leaving the ground melloAV, so that the 
squash vines Avill root at every joint. This is a great saving of ground in a 
small garden. Train them all one Avay. 

Experiments in Melon and Stiua,.sli Culture. — A practical gardener 
makes the following statement: " Last year, as a test of a frequent practice 
among groAvers of melons and squashes, I pinched the ends of the long main 
shoots of the melons, squashes, and cucumbers, and left some to ran at their 
own Avill. One squash-plant sent out a single stem reaching more than forty 
feet, but did not bear any fruit. Another plant was pinched until it formed 
a compact mass of interminghng side-shoots eight feet square, and it bore 
sixteen squashes. The present year a muskmelon-plant thus pinched 
in, covered the space allotted to it, and it set tAventy-three specimens of 
fruit; the most of them were pinched cff. The pinching causes many lateral 
branches, AA'liich latter produce the female or fertile blossoms, Avhile the 
main vines produce only the male blossoms. The difference in favor of the 
yield of an acre of melons treated by this pinching process may easily 
amount to 100 barrels." 

Hints on Melon Culture. — A correspondent at Brighton, 111., Avrites to 
an agricultural paper: " Of course everybody who knoAvs anything at all 
about melon culture understands that melons do best on Avarm sandy land, 
but everybody, perhaps, don't know that I have raised fine melons on heavy 
clay soil. I put the land in first-rate condition and fertilize in the hill with 
Avell-rotted barnyard manure. I also raise the hills a feAv inches above the 
level to make the ground Avarmer and dryer. I never put seed in the ground 
until the Aveather is settled and the soil is dry and warm. I use plenty of 
seed, so as to insure a good stand. The A'ery day the vines begin to shoAv 
g;reen above ground I begin sprinkling the hills Avith bone-dust, Avhich opera- 
tion I repeat every day until they ai-e out of reach of the striped bug, that 
foe to melon patches. Noav I don't say that sprinkling Avith bone-dust is a 
sure preventive in all cases to the bug, but it has proved a paying applica- 
tion to me. I have had fewer bugs in my melon patl;h since I began using 



THE a AM DUN. 93 

it, and it also acts as a tonic to the vines, making them more vigorous. I do 
not confine the applications of bono dust to melon vines, but use it where- 
ever I fear the striped bugs." 

A fiejw Method of Watermelon Culture. — A correspondent of the 
Rural JVeni Yorker describes the following method by which an extraor- 
dinary ci'Op of watermelons was raised: Holes were dug ten feet apart each 
way, eighteen inches square and fifteen inches deep. These holes were filled 
witti well-rotted manure, which was thoroughly incorporated with the soil. 
A low, flat hill was then made and seed planted. When the vines Avere large 
enough to begin to run, the whole sui'face was covered to the depth of a foot 
or tifteeu inches Avith Avheat straAV. The straAv was placed close up around 
the vines. No cultivation whatever Avas given afterAvard; no Aveeds or grass 
grcAv. The vines spread over the straAV, and the melons matured clean and 
nice. The yield Avas abundant, aud the experiment an entire success. This 
is surely Avorth trying. 

Boxe^ for Melons and Cucumbers. — It is a good plan to make boxes. 
Bay twelve inches square and eight inches high, without bottom or top; these, 
placed over the cucumber or melon hills, and covered with grass, give an 
impetus to the plants early in the season that nothing short of a hot-bed Avill 
effect. If very early, place a little fresh manure around these boxes to keep 
the contents Avarm. It is astonishing what an effect this simple contrivance 
Avill produce; and not only is it valuable for protection from the cold weather, 
but it is equally valuable as a protection from melon bugs and other predatory 
insects that seem to Avatch for our choicest esculents. 

Cucumbers on TreUises — No one Avho has not tried it can have any 
idea of the luxurious groAvth of a cucumber when trained on a stake, Avhich 
has a set of stubby side branches left along its length, and the crop on some 
so trained Avas enormous. By this the vines occupy less space, and it is the 
natural habit of the cucumber to climb instead of trailing on the ground. 

How to Grow Early Cabbage:* — A successful gardener Avrites: I 
sow the seeds of the kinds I Avish to groAV in February or first of March, in 
small or shallow boxes, in forcing-pit, hot-bed, or if these are not to be had, 
a sunny AvindoAv of the house Avill do. The boxes I use are eighteen by 
twenty-four inches, three inches deep, made of one-half inch boards. The 
kinds of early cabbage I generally raise are Early Jersey Wakefield (best if 
pure), Winningstadt, Early Summer and Fottler's Early Druhihead. The 
first tAVO for early, the others for second early. I only treated the first two 
as above stated; the second early I sow in common hot-beds from the 1st to 
the 15th of March. After the seeds sown in boxes are up and about three 
inches high, it is necessary to transplant them in other boxes, like those they 
Avere soaa'u in, about one and a half to two inches apart every Avay; or put 
one plant in each pot, and pots close together in boxes, treating the same as 
if planted in boxes. Pots are better than boxes, and I use them largely. 
About o«ie week or ten days before planting in garden, they must be hard- 
ened off by exposing gradually, night and day, in the open air. I set my 
plants the end of April or beginning of May. The plants Avhjch are in boxes 
are taken in the boxes to the part of the garden where the ground is ready 
to plant. Plant Wakefield twenty inches in roAvs and Early Summer the 
same; the other kinds tAVenty-four inches. The rows should be thirty inchea 
jipart, so that a cultivator can be used. Early radish, lettuce, spinach, etc.. 



94 THE FARM. 

can be sown between the cabbage rows, and be out before the cabbage needs 
all the room. After cabbage, celery can bi^sown, on the same ground. In 
this Avay other vegetable plants can be raised to advantage. In fact, I have 
raised all the following with success: Early cauliflower, early lettuce, early 
kohlrabi, early savoy, early celery, early beet, early tomatoes, early 
cucumbers and early squashes. 

Fertilizer for Cal>l>age. — " I tind," says a writer in the Netc England 
Homei>iead, "that cabbage needs more hoeing and stirring of the soil than 
almost any other crop. Neither do I approve of too much stable manure, 
except for an early crop, for it has a tendency to dry the soil and does not 
furnish potash enough. I had much rather have tobacco stems or stalks, cut 
up tine and plowed under broadcast, with some chemicals in the drill, for a 
mediuni or late crop. As to chemicals, Avhether to be used alone or in com- 
bination with other manures, I recommend this formula as being best and 
cheapest, wliich every farmer must make for himself: Two hundred pounds 
of dry ground fish, two hundred pounds of bone meal dissolved in sulphuric 
acid, two hundred pounds castor pomace and one hundred pounds of 
muriate potash, or more if the potash salts (kainit) are iised. The fish and 
castor pomace furnish ammonia in quick and slow forms; the bone, phos- 
phoric acid; while the potash is very necessary to a cabbage crop. A ton of 
this mixture costs aboiit $40, and is STiflicient for an acre with light manuring, 
or half the quantity if mamire is used liberally. This is the best cabbage 
gi-ower I have found. With it and tobacco stalks, used as described, I raised 
cabbages that weighed over tAventy pounds. One dozen, as they were taken 
to market, weighed over two hundred jiounds." 

. Novel Metliod of Growing Cabbages. — A novel plan for setting 
celery and cabbage plants which has several desirable points to recommend 
it, is to place them between the rows of your potatoes or sweet corn after the 
last hoeing. The gi-owiug corn or potatoes will afford a partial shade which 
is very desirable at the time of setting the young plants and until they get 
fully established, and yet ripen and can be removed in time for them to 
occupy the ground as a second crop. Two crops on one piece of ground 
with ten dollars' worth of labor and manure Avill afford more profit than one 
crop on which five dollars are expended. 

Parsley. — No garden is complete without a parsley bed, and nothing 
looks prettier or more ornamental. It is not only useful in soups, but for 
garnishing dishes of meats and vegetables it cannot be surpassed. The only 
objection to it is its slow germination. As a small bed of parsley is sufficient 
for a family garden, the labor necessary to its cultivation is trifling, as the 
attention to a few square yards of groiand can hardly be considered an 
encroachment upon regular work. It is a native of Sardinia and loves warm 
weather, but owing to the length of time required for the seeds to germinate, 
a should be sown very early. It the seed is soaked for twenty-four hoiirs 
in warm water, previous to sowing, they will sprout in shorter time, or, what 
is better, mix them with earth dampened with warm water, and keep near 
the stove in a box until the seeds burst. The earth in the box should not 
be allowed to become dry from evaporation, but the moisture should be 
kept by frequent additions of warm water, care being observed not to have it 
too wet. The ground should be very rich, with well-rotted manure if any 
is used, spaded deep and fine, and well raked, in order that not the smallest 
Jump or stone may remain. Then sow the seed in rows, mixed with radish, 



fitE aARDEN. 95 

and cover lightly. As the radish will soon push through and show the 
rows, the grass can be kept down with the hand. 

Spinacli. — Spinach, though an aristocratic crop on some accounts, may 
become also the one crop of the masses for early use, if they will only groAv 
it. And this is the way: Wheel some manure upon the patch where your 
early garden peas were, spade the ground thoroughly, marli it off in drills 
eighteen inches apart and an inch or so deep, and sow to spinach. That is 
all there is to it. Sow the seed thickly in the rows, and when it has attained 
sufficient size to thin out, what a delicious dish of " greens " you will have 
this fall, at a season, too, when, although green things are generally no rarity, 
yet, because of their extreme delicacy and lusciousness, you will esteem 
them a great and rare treat. Then with the on-coming of freezing ground, 
cover Avith straw or litter of any kind. Let this remain till after the frost is 
out of the ground in the spi'ing, when it may be taken off, and, with the first 
tulips of your floAver garden, you will also have spinach greens for your din- 
ner — a most dehcious and healthy dish. Moreover, if you do happen to have 
more than you want, just take them to the village market, and see how 
readily you can sell the surplus. Perhaps, indeed, you may thus establish 
quite a profitable local trade in this delicious crop. Try it. 

Poles for Beans and. Otlier Climbers. — White birches and alders so 
commonly used for bean poles, are about the poorest, for they last only one 
season at the best, and sometimes break off at the surface of the ground, and 
let down the beautiful pyramid of green before the pods are ripe. White 
cedar from the swamps is durable, and the rough bark enables the vines to 
chmb without any help from strings, but these are not always accessible. 
Red cedar is much more widely distributed, and on the Avhole makes the 
best bean pole. The wood is as durable as the white cedar, and young trees, 
from which poles are made, grow quite stout at the ground, and, if well set, 
will resist very strong winds. A set of these poles will last for a generation. 
For bean poles, all the side branches are trimmed off, but for a support for 
ornamental climbers, these may be left on. A cedar, six or eight feet high, 
with the branches gradually shortened from below, upwards, makes an ex- 
cellent support for ornamental vines. One of these, covered with a clematis, 
or other showy climber, makes a pyramid of great beauty. It is well to pre- 
pare a supply of poles for beans and other plants before the work is 
pressing. 

Beets. — For beets the soil should be rich, mellow and deep. Plant in 
drills about tNvo inches deep and the rows about twelve or fifteen mches 
apart. Set the seeds in the drills about two inches apart. For field culture 
the rows should be wide enough to admit, the horse cultivator and the roots 
not nearer than one foot in the rows. The mangel-wurzel beets grow to a 
very large size, are coarse and wonderfully productive, making excellent 
food for cattle. Those who have never tried the mangels for stock have yet 
to learn of then- great value for cattle, both for milk and meat. Then, they 
are juicy and refreshing, and add to the health and comfort of the animals. 
In no way can so much good food be grown as cheaply as in mangels. 

Tlie Melon Worm. — The melon worm (Phakellura hyalinaialis) is about 
an inch and a quarter in length when mature, of a Hght yellowish-green 
color, and nearly translucent. The moMi is remarkable for its beauty, its 
wings being pearly- white bordered with a narrow band of black, its legs and 



96 



THE FARM. 



body white, and the abdomen termmated with a feather-hke tuft tipped with 
white and black. In our accompanying illustration, the chrysalis, worm, 
and moth are shown. This worm belongs to the same genus as the pickle 
worm ( Phakellara mitidalis), the moth of the latter differing fi"om that of 
the former in having the ground-work of the wings a bronze-yellow, and 
the black border a Httle broader. 

The melon worm is proving to be, in many parts of the country, a most 
destructive enemy to melons, cucumbers, pumpkins, and other cucurbita- 
oeous plants. It goes to work in an exceedingly business-like way, making 

skeletons of the plant 
leaves ar excavating 
numerous cavities in 
the fruit where it ap- 
pears. Sometimes it 
forces its way into the 
melon until out of 
sight, though more 
frequently it makes a 
shallow cavity sm 
eighth of an inch or 
more in depth, and 
in this pursues its 
work. 

Efficient remedies 
for this pest are still 
wanting. Paris 
green and London 
purple would proba- 
bly prove effective, 
but it is not safe to 
use these on account 
of their liability to 
poison those who eat 
the fi-uit. Pijretn- 
rum, or Persian In- 
sect Powder, might 
prove as effective in 
ridding the plants of 
the worms, and it has 
the advantage of be- 
ing entu'ely harmless 
to human beings. Whatever poison is used, it should be applied to both 
foHage and fruit, inasmuch as the destruction of the fomier will prevent the 
latter from coming to maturity. Early planting, so that the fruit may be 
picked early, or before the destructive brood appears, is a preventive, and if 
the worms be destroyed on their first appearance on the foliage before the 
fruit begins to form, there will be much less danger to the fruit crop. 

Insects on Garden Vegetable >;._The most common of these are the 
saterpillars of medium-sized butterflies, the wings of which are white, with 
a few black spots; there are three distinct species, but all are similar in 
their habits. Wherever these buttei-flies are seen flitting about over the 
cabbage and cauliflower plants, trouble from " worms " may soon be ex- 




THE MEIiON WORM. 



THE GARDEN. 97 

pected. Safety consists in attacking them early. Some worms eat into the 
forming head, and when they have thus hidden, nothing can be done. In 
small gardens, hand-picking will answer, but where there are many cab- 
bages, this is not practicable. The Persian Insect Powder, the Pyrethrum, 
is the best, and a safe application. There are in some localities cabbage 
woi'ms which come from other butterflies, but they are to be treated in the 
same manner. The large green caterpillar, of the live-spotted Sphinx, 
known as the " Tomato Worm," is most destructive; it will soon leave no- 
thing but bare stems upon a tomato plant, eating the greeu fruit as well as 
the leaves. When the tomatoes are supported by some kind of a trellis, as 
they always should be in a garden, worms may be detected by the quantity 
of large pellets of droppings found upon the ground. Where these are seen, 
the worm should be sought for. Stems without leaves also indicate its pres- 
ence. When not eating, it \Aill be found close to the stems, on their under- 
side, and as it is of nearly the same color, may escape notice. The 
" worms " are never very numerous, and hand-picking is the best way 
to deal with them. In spite of the horn at the tail-end, they can neither 
sting nor bite. Frequently one of these will be found with its body nearly 
covered with small egg-shaped white cocoons, often mistaken for eggs. 
Worms ■with these should not be destroyed, as they are too weak to do 
much damage, and the parasitic insect should have time to leave these 
cocoons, as they are our friends, and should be encouraged. The tomato- 
worm may sometimes be found on potatoes. — American Agriculturist. 

Hot Water on tlie Gardeii—Insecticides are in demand. The 
farmer's first interest is to gain an insecticide that is effective. The next 
important point is that it be sufficiently cheap in cost to permit of free use. 
Hot water some of the English gardeners accept as a cheap insecticide not 
sufficiently appreciated, and capable of more extended employment than is 
usually believed. Hot water judiciously applied has been found eflective 
among American farmers for cabbage worms. In careful hands its appli- 
cation, after the cabbage heads begin to form, has not injured the plants, 
but has destroyed the bugs. Experiments Avith hot water on the aj)his at 
Stoke Newington and reported in the English journals, made it appear that 
aphides perish immediately if immersed in water heated to 120 degrees 
Fahrenheit. In order to ascertain the degree of heat infested plants could 
endure in the dipping process, a number of herbaceous and soft-wooded 
plants were immersed in water heated to various degrees above 120. Fuch- 
sias were unharmed at 140 degrees and injured at 150 degrees. Pelargo- 
niums were unhurt up to 150 degrees, but the slightest rise above that figure 
killed the soft wood and young leaves. Ferns, heliotropes, petunias, be- 
gonias, mignonette and many other plants of soft texture were unhurt by 
being dipped in water at 140 degrees, but the slightest rise above that point 
proves detrimental. Boses grown in pots for market Avere kept clean by 
dipping in water at 120 degrees without injury to the plants and every aphis 
destroyed. 

Gas Tar ag a Remedy for Bugs. — A correspondent of the Chicago Tri- 
bune says: " For the last five years I have not lost a cucumber or a melon 
vine or a cabbage plant. Get a barrel with a few gallons of gas tar in it; 
pour water on the tar; always have it ready when needed, and, when the 
bugs appear, give them a liberal drink of the tar water from a garden 
sprinkler or otherwise, and, if the rain washes it off and they return, re- 
peat the dose. It will also destroy the Colox-ado potato beetle, and frighten 



98 THK FARM. 

the old long potato bug worse than a threshing with a brush. Five years 
ago this summer both kinds appeared on my late potatoes, and I watered 
with the tar water. The next day all Colorados that had not been protected 
from the sprinkler were dead, and the others, their name Avas legion, were 
all gone, and I have never seen one on the farm since. I am aware that 
many will look upon this with indifference, because it is so simple and cheap 
a remedy. Such should always feed their OAvn and their neighbors' bugs, as 
they frequently do." 

Remedy for tlie Green Fly — A writer in the DeidscUe Zeitung states 
that he last year had an opportunity of trying a remedy for destroying green 
fly and other insects which infest i)lant8. It was not his own discovery, but 
he found it among other recipes in some provincial paper. Tha- stems and 
leaves of the tomato are well boiled in water, and when the liquid is cold it 
is syringed over plants attacked by insects. It at once destroys black or 
gi'een fly, caterpillars, etc. ; and it leaves behind a peculiar odor, which pre- 
vents insects from coming again for a long time. The author states that he 
found this remedy more effectual than fumigating, washing, etc. Through 
neglect a house of camelias had become almost hopelessly infested with 
black lice, but two syringings with tomato plant decoction thoroughly 
cleansed them. 

To Destroy Bugs on Vines. — To destroy bugs on squash and cucum- 
ber vines, dissolve a tablespoonful of saltpetre in a pailful of water; put one 
pint of this around each hill, shaping the earth so that it will not spread 
much, and the thing is done. Use more saltpetre if you can afford it — it is 
good for vegetable, but death to animal hfe. The bugs burrow in the earth 
at night and fail to rise in the morning. It is also good to kill the " grub " in 
peach trees — only use twice as much, say a quart to each tree. There was 
not a yellow or blistered leaf on twelve or fifteen trees to which it was 
applied last season. No danger of killing any vegetable with it— a concen- 
trated solution applied to beans makes them grow wonderfully. 

Protecting Yonng Plants. — The striped bug is very destructive to 
young plants, especially of vines. It is almost impossible to get a stand of 
early cucumbers, on account of this pest. A wi-iter in one of our exchanges 
states that a good protection is secured by cutting a sheet of cotton wadding 
into nine equal pieces, and then spliting them, making eighteen, at a cost for 
all of only four cents. These are placed over the hills before the plants are 
up, the corners held down with small stones. They are elastic and stretch 
as the plants grow. The bug cannot get through them. They are also some 
protection against frost. 

A Valuable Mixture. — A valuable mixture to keep on hand is one of coal 
ashes, sulphur and hellebore. The ashes should be very fine. It is best 
after passing them through the ordinary coal-ash sieve. To one pailful of 
ashes thus sifted, add a quart each of flour of sulphur and hellebore, and 
mix together. For currant worms, plant lice, cabbage fleas, slugs on pear 
trees, melon bugs, we found this so effectual that we confidently recommend 
it. It is always best to use it in the cool of the morning while the dew is 
upon the leaf. 

To Get Rid of Grubs. — The carrot crop is rendered useless in many 
gardens by grubs eating into the roots. This takes place in many well-man- 
aged gardens. The best remedy is to scatter a quantity of soot and lime 



THE GAIiDEK. 99 

over the surface of the ground before forking it over for the carrots. This 
works it into the ground, and keeps the soil free from all sorts of grubs for 
the whole season. The next best way is to sow the lime and soot between 
the rows and hoe it into the ground. 

Coal Asli Walks for tlie Crardeii. — Good, sound, dry walks are a 
necessity in all garden grounds, in order that the work in them may be car- 
ried on with comfort during all weathers, and although there is nothing like 
good gravel for walks in pleasure grounds, it frequently happens that, from 
the difficulty of getting gravel in quantity within a reasonable distance, the 
kitchen garden walks have to be made of what is most abundant. After try- 
ing all sorts of materials in different counties, it was found that nothing 
makes a better path than ashes. The way in which we use them is to form 
grass verges one foot wide and about one foot deep. In the bottom of the 
Avalk are put brickbats, stones, or other rubbish. On these a good layer of 
clinkers is spread, and broken down tolerably fine, when a good coating of 
ashes is spread evenly over the surface, and rolled down. These form one 
of the pleasantest paths on which to walk, wheel, or cart that it is possible to 
have. Weeds are not troublesome, for the material has been cleaned by 
passing through the furnace, and if a few seeds blow on to the surface and 
germinate they can be easily removed. 

Club Root ill Cabtoage. — M. Waronin, an authoritative microscopic' 
botanist of Europe, who has given particular attention to destructive insects, 
and especially to those predatory in the cabbage, finds that the abnormal 
growth on the roots, which he denominates club root, but which is known in 
the United States as club foot, is caused by a minute fungus, to which he has 
given the name of Plasmodiophora hrassicce. Thin sections of the diseased 
portions reveal the fungus with its spores, under the higher powers of the 
microscope. As the spores are exceedingly numerous, the soil becomes in- 
fested Avith them, and communicates the trouble to plants upon the same 
soil next year. A diseased crop should not be followed by cabbage again. 
Only healthy plants shoiild be set. An application of lime to the soil has 
proved of benefit, and from the nature of the trouble, he thinks, the use of 
sulphur would be useful. 

Soil for Sugar Beets. — The beet requires a deep, permeable soil, for 
its roots penetrate deeply into the ground and are abundantly supplied with 
fine fibers through which it receives its nourishment. If the soil does not 
permit the root to grow down deeply the top will be forced to grow above the 
ground, and the crown which grows out of ground is nearly worthless for 
sugar purposes. A deep, sandy loam is the best soil to produce beets rich 
in sugar. They will, however, gi*ow on a variety of soils, and any soil which 
mil plow and subsoil to the depth of twelve or fifteen inches is a good beet 
soil. Avoid all wet lauds and muck bottoms as unsuitable. Beets will not 
flourish on wet lands, and what grow are not sweet. Muck bottoms produce 
large tops but small roots with little sugar in them. 

Sulpbui- and Tobacco. — A mixture of sulphur and finely ground 
tobacco, two parts of the former to one of the latter, has been found an ex- 
cellent preventive of the ravages of insects on squash and other vines, as 
well as for keeping lice from cattle, dogs and poultry. It is also recom- 
mended for sprinkling trees and bushes that are eaten by canker worms or 
currant worms. 



loo THE FAliM. 

Cultivation of Tobacco — To raise tobacco, select a sheltered aituatioti^ 
where the young plants can receive the full force of the sun; burn over the 
sui-face of the ground early in spring (new land is best), rake it well, and 
sow the seeds; have a dry, mellow, rich soil, and after a shower, when the 
jilants have got leaves the size of a quarter-dollar, transplant as you would 
cabbage plants, tlu-ee and one-half feet apart, and weed out carefully after- 
ward. Break off the suckers from the foot-stalks, as they appear; also the 
tops of the plants when they are well advanced, say about three feet high, 
except those designed for seed, which should be the largest and best plants. 
The ripeness of tobacco is known by small dusky spcits appearing on the 
leaves. The plants should then be cut near .the roots, on the morning of a 
day of sunshine, and should lie singly to wither. When sufficiently with- 
ered, gather them carefully together, and hang them xip Tinder cover to cure 
and prepare for market. 

Starting Plants Early. — A writer on gardening gives the following 
hints on starting tender seeds, such as tomatoes, squashes, melons, and the 
like: " It is desirable in transplanting not to check the growth by disturbing 
tlie roots. A good way to avoid this is to scrape out turnips, fill them with 
good soil and plant in two or three seeds, setting them in a warm, light 
place, and keeping them moist. Wi\en the weather is suitable, place these 
out in the garden at the proper depth. The turnip will decay and the plant 
Avill thrive unchecked if j^roperly cared fur. Do not use potatoes instead of 
turnipa. Another method is to get squares of sod, say six inches wide, from 
good, mellow soil, turn them bottom up, and put such seeds as squash, 
melon or sweet corn, and treat them in the same way, not putting out tiU 
the weather is quite warm, and then protecting against bugs. For more 
delicate plants, flowers, etc., make little square paper boxes out of thin 
writing paper, or thick newspaper, merely folding tlem at the corners as 
you would the paper in •covering a book, and tacking them with a needle 
and thread; make them about three inches square and two deep. Fill with 
good soil; start the seeds and put them out at the proper time, boxes and 
all, without disturbing the roots. If you fear the paper is too strong for the 
roots to penetrate, cut carefully on the bottom of the box the shape of a 
cross, and all will be well." 

Seeds for Small Gardens—People who grow largely for market know, 
as a part of their business, how many garden seeds to sow% but this is not 
always the case with the man or woman who has but a small garden. For 
these we give the following: Asparagus, bed of 15 square yards, 1 pint. 
Beet, row 50 feet, 2 ounces. Cabbage, bed of 8 square yards, 1 ounce. 
Carrots, drill of 120 feet, 2 ounces. Carrots, bed of 12 square yards, 2 
ounces. Celery, 4 square yards, 1 ounce. Endive, 4 square yards, 1 ounce. 
Bush beans, row 80 feet, 1 pint. Leek, 2 square yards, 1 ounce. Lettuce, 4 
square yards, 1 ounce. Onions, 9 square yards, 2 ounces. Parsley, row 80 
feet, one and a half ounces. Parsnip, drill of 200 feet, 2 ounces. Peas, 
early, row 60 feet, one and a half pints. Peas, large, late, row 80 feet, one 
and a half pints. Potatoes, row 30 feet, half jjeck. Radishes, 4 square 
yards, one and a half ounces. Spinach, 10 square yards, 2 ounces. Spinach, 
drill of 120 feet, 2 ounces. Turnip, 4 square yards, 1 ounce. 

Asparagus as a Lia-*vn Plant. — A friend suggests a very good idea as 
to asparagus: " Of course the old plan of sticking the plants in close beds is 
all wrong. There are many bits of fine soil in gardens, even tho so-called 



THE aMtDEK. lOl 

pleasure grounds and hardy plant borders, where a strong clump of the 
common asparagus woxild be a great ornament, as well as of use. I shall 
plant a hnndi-ed or more good clumps ®f asparagus in our borders here, 
partly for its tender shoots in spring, partly for its spray for cutting during 
the summer and autumn mouths, but mainly for its feathery grace as a 
beautiful, hardy plant. In many a villa garden, even where good asparagus 
may never be seen raised in the ordinary way, a capital supply could be o))- 
tained by simply dotting a few plants here and there in borders, and on the 
margins of shrubberies, not only as single specimens, but as groups and 
masses— never, however, nearer to each other than four feet." 

Training Tomatoe., — A housewife, who vouches for the success of her 
plan, makes these sviggestions for tomato training: "When the plants are 
ready for the garden, make a considerable hill of good compost. Chip ma- 
nure is excellent, and a quantity of chicken manure is good. After the hill 
is made, drive a long stake through it. This may be six feet high. Set the 
plant near it. The training will require attention. The j^lant Avill immedi- 
ately begin to sucker, or throw outside shoots, just above each leaf. These 
must be cut off, and then the plant will rim up vigorously. Tie it to the 
stake, and do not be afraid to use the knife. Keep on cutting each stem 
that appears in the axil of a leaf, and keep on tying. The first bearing 
branches come directly from the body of the plant. Remember that this 
trimming must be continued as long as the plant bears. Thus trained, *he 
fruit is superior in size, quantity, and flavor, besides being less liable to rot 
or drop off." 

Bending Down Onions — Many old truck farmers have caused surprise 
to lookers-on at their Avork, to see them ])ending over their onion tops. The 
time to do ttiis is when some begin to show signs of flowering. The method 
is thus explained: "This operation maybe done by the hand, but time is 
saved 1%' two persons each holding one of the ends of a pole in such a man- 
ner as to strike the stems an inch or two above the bulbs. This is called 
' lajdng over,' and is of great benefit to all crops of onions, as the growth of 
the stems is thereby much checked, and the whole nourishment thrown 
into the bulbs. It is an old practice in family gardens, and has never failed 
to give satisfactory results." 

Early Cncnnibers and Melons — For early melons or cucumbers many 
plant the seeds on inverted sods cut about four inches square. The sods 
are placed in a frame of any kind, and covered to the depth of half an inch 
with mellow, rich earth. The plants root firmly in these sods the same as 
they would in small flower-pots, and may safely be transplanted as soon as 
the weather becomes settled and warm. For melons this is an excellent 
plan, since our seasons are scarcely long enough to ripen them before the 
cool nights of autiimn, when the seeds are planted in the ground in the 
usual way. 

Benefits of Hoeing — Any one passing along where there are gardens 
can nearly always find evidences of the benefits of a constant stirring of the 
soil. The man who cultivates continually has always a better crop than has 
the one who is satisfied with a hard surface. The benefits from a loose soil 
are, in fact, so great as what many a load of manure gives. Those who have 
flower-beds know how much better plants grow when the ground is stirred. 
In the growing season all the rain that falls is needed by the crops, and a 
loose soil keeps the rain which the hard ground allows to run off. 



102 THE FARM. 

New Idea i in A.'^paragus Culture. — Gardeners generally are beginning 
to adopt the practice of giving at least one yard distance between the plants 
in making new plantations of asparagus. They have found that the roots 
run horizontally, and not directly downward, and, therefore, that it is not 
advisable to continu^e the old practice of digging doAvu two or three feet for a 
narrow bed, to be filled with manure mixed with soil, on Avhich plants are to 
be set only a foot apai-t. Large shoots of asparagus an inch in diameter 
cannot be had by such treatment. 

Siibstitiite for Beau Poles. — A New England farmer says: " In my own 
gardening I have found a most satisfactory substitute for bean poles, which 
latter are not only expensive, but a source of trouble and care. I plant a 
sunflower seed by each hill of beans, the stock answering the same piirpose 
as the ordinary beau pole, besides providing an excellent feed for my poul- 
try. I have been using for this purpose a mammoth variety of sunflower 
seed, many of the flowers of which measured fifteen inches across the seed 
bed." 

Potato Juice as au Insect Destroyer. — As an insect destroyer the 
juice of the potato plant is said to be of great value; the leaves and stems 
are well boiled in water, and when the liquid is cold it is sprinkled over 
l>lants attacked Avith insects, Avhen it at once destroys caterpillars, black and 
green flies, gnats, and other enemies to vegetables, and in no way impairs 
the growth of the plants. A peculiar odor remains, and prevents insects 
from coming again for a long time. 

To Force Radislies.— Badishes may be grown in a few days by the fol- 
lowing method: Let some good radish seed soak in water for tAventy-four 
hours, and then put them in a bag and expose to the siin. In the course of 
the day germiuation will commence. The seed must then be sown in a well- 
manured hot-bed, and Avatered from time to time in lukeAA-^arm Avater. By 
this treatment the radishes Avill, in a very short time, acquire quite a large 
bulk, and be very good to eat. 

Culture of Sugar-Beets. — The best sugar-beet, AA'hen properly grown, 
should 1)0 conical, and Avith a single tap-root. To groAv such beets the soil 
should be deep, melloAv, free from stones, and abundantly rich. A deep, 
sandy loam, Avith plenty of vegetable matter, may be expected to pi'odnce, 
Avith clean culture, a profitable crop of sugar-beets. A strong clay is not 
suitable, neither is a soil that is low and naturally wet and cold. 

AVeeds oi» Gravel "Walki^fc—Weeds on gravel walks may be destroyed 
and prevented from growing again by a copious dressing of the cheapest 
salt. This is a better method than hand-pulling, which disturbs the gravel 
and renders constant raking and rolling necessary. One application early in 
the season, and others as may be needed, Avhile the Aveeda are small, will 
keep the walks clean and bright. 

Water Necessary to Cauliflower.— A gentleman in Colorado informs 
us that by irrigation he grcAv cauliflower-heads four feet three inches in cir- 
cumfei'ence. Cauliflower is fond of Avater, and we have seen large planta- 
tions on the continent of Europe that Avere regularly Avatered every evening 
except during rainy weather. 



ORCHARD AND VINEYARD. 




Pruning— Malting tlie Cut. — In pruniug branches from trees with the 
kiiife, the method of making the cut is a matter of some importance. We 
have had some illustrations made, 
showing several ways, often fol- 
lowed, which are wrong, and the 
one which is right; a shows the 
right method of making the cut, at 
an angle of about forty-tive degrees, 
and having the bud at the back in 
the best position for throwing new 
bark and wood quickly over the 
wound; b shows too much of the 
wood cut away, leaving the bud ex- 
posed and liable to die by drying or 
freezing; c, this cut was started 
right, but, owing to a dull knife or 
want of firmness in the hand, the 
cut was made too sloping. This 
will not heal over so quickly as the cut at a; d, e, and / are all wrong; the 
wood above the bud dying will cause knots and perhaps decay. Crooked 
limbs will also result fi'om these ways of cutting. 

Prnning Decidisoiii Tree.^— As a general rule, the less shade trees are 

pruned the better. Nature will 
kP- form a better top and a more har- 
monious tree in all its parts than 
art. Severe pruning is no longer 
practiced, even in frviit orchards, 
by our best horticulturists. The 
custom that formerly prevailed of 
pruning evergreens and other 
trees, so as to make top-shaped, 
ovate, and other fantastic tops, is 
no longer regarded as good taste. 
If you want a tree with a low- 
spreading top, plant one that grows 
that way. If you want an ovate or 
pyramidal top, plant a tree. that will 
make such a top, but do not at- 
tempt to force trees to assume dif- 
ferent forms from those which nature gives them. Each tree treated in this 
way is a standing lie, and proclaims to every passer-by the folly of its owner. 
The true idea is to make each species assume, as nearly as possible, the 
typical form of that species. To do this, some pruning is sometimes neces- 
sary. If the trees are not crowded — if each one has room enough for the air 




W)4 THE FARM. 

aud sunlight to have free access to it on all sides, it will round out and de- 
velop its full proportions, and if it does not actually attain it, will approxi- 
mate its tjq^ical form. Where the lower limbs are in the way, of course they 
must be sacrificed; but where they are not, leave them, and you will have a 
finer and more thrifty tree. If a limb, as is often the case with the elm in 
our dry soil, extends beyond the rest, absorbing the strength and destroying 
the symmetry of the tree, it should be cut back while yet small. 

The soft maple often throws out limbs that have no firm attachments to 
the body, and they will sooner or later spUt off; these should be removed 
while small. The idea of cutting back the top of a soft maple, or any other 
tree, to prevent it from becoming top heavy, is fallacious; it reUeves for the 
time, but makes it worse afterward. If a soft maple, as some of them will 
do, breaks bodily, and continues to do so, it is better to remove it aud plant 
another in its place. Severe pruning lowers the vitaUty of any ordinary tree, 
making it less able to bear the drouth aud heat of summer and the cold of 
winter, aud lea^^ng it an easy prey to borers and other noxious insects. 

As a strong man is able to resist disease, so a vigorous tree is able to re- 
sist the attacks of its enemies, while a feeble one succumbs. ' 

So far as possible all limbs should be removed while small. It is rarely 
necessary to cut a large limb from a tree that has been properly cared for. 

Tlie Best Time to Prune Fruit Trees— -The correct principles which 
underUe the pruning of fruit trees are probably as imperfectly understood 
as any other point in fruit-growing. Most i)eople prune in the spring, some 
through the winter, others in the summer. Noav, after carefully observing 
the effects of pruning done at difi"erent seasons, I have come to the conclu- 
sion that the best time to prune is in early summer, after the first rush of 
sap is past, and before the trees have made much growth of new Avood. 

When trees are pruned in winter, a considerable time must elapse before 
the Avounds made begin to heal over. Duiing this time the combined action 
of the frost and sun are injurious to the newly-cut and exposed Avood aud 
bark, and it Avill take a longer time to heal over than if the Avound was made 
at the time Avhen the tree Avas beginning to make new groAvth.. 

When trees are pruned in early spring, the saj) is then in a thin, Avatery 
state; it oozes out of the cut, causing premature decay and permanent in- 
jury to the tree. 

When trees are pruned in early summer, after the rush of thin, watery 
sap is past and the tree has fairly commenced to make a new growth, the 
Avounds AAill commence at once to heal over. The exposed Avood Avill remain 
sound for a longer period than if cut in early spring. 

Another very important point in early summer pruning is, it does not 
check the groAvth of the tree, as Avheu it is done later in the season. 

Some advocate pruning in July and August, but I Avould only prune then 
m cases Av^here the tree was making too much Avood growth, AA-hich I wanted 
to check and throw the tree into a bearing state. 

Another very important point in pruning, and yet one Avhich is very much 
neglected, is to cover the cuts AA'ith some substance to protect them fi-om the 
influence of the Aveatiier. Common grafting Avax, or a mixture of clay and 
cow manure, is beneficial; but perhaps the best thing, AA^hen it can be got 
pure and good, is gum shellac dissolved in alcohol to the consistency of 
paint. A protection of this kind is always beneficial to newly-pruned trees; 
it neutralizes to a great extent the injurious effects arising from pruning 
trees at an improper season. 



ORCHARD AND VINEYARD, 



105 



Pruning Versus Mutilation.— There is, perhaps, no one item in hor- 
ticulture about which so httle is really understood as the principle which 
should govern in the pruning away of Umbs and branches from trees The 
following illustj-ation will serve, perhaps, better than a long homily, to 
show how we Avould prune a tree and keep it in condition from year to year, 
healthy and productive. Fig. 1 exhibits a tree which has had little or no 
pruning; its top branches have become rather crowded, and some seasons 
the fruit is not well colored. We take our long stepladder and a pair of good, 
strong pruning shears, set our ladder just outside, underneath the Umbs, 
and with our sharp shears cut away the small spray and limbs that cross one 
another and crowd the extremities, so as to prevent the sun's rays penetrat- 
ing to the center of the tree. The dark, short marks indicate some of the 
cuts that we should make in pruning the tree. Fig. 2, shown on next page, 
exhibits the tree as it is often found after the mutilator, not pruner, has 
operated upon it. Vandals roam 

the country every spring claim- , -,; ^ ^^ ^1 ^ 

ing to know how to prune trees. 
We hope what we have here said 
and illustrated may save at least 
one good orchard from this sys- 
tem of murderous pruning. 

Pruning for Fruit. — By 

arresting or removing the little 
faults of his children as soon as 
they are shown, the wise father 
prevents their attaining such in- 
veteracy as will not submit to 
correction, but burst out imme- 
diately with fresh misdeeds. So 
with orchard trees. It is a great 
mistake to let growth nin on 
without restraint for two or three 
years, and to suppose that a 
pruning then will set all to rights. 
The fundamental rule of the art 
is to take away all young shoots 
that are not fitted to make per- 
manent bearing branches. Ee- 
move these, the sooner the better, but remove no others. Cut out and flup- 
press all wild shoots that issue below the graft, and whose growth would 
rob or smother it. Cut out all shoots in the interior of the trees that will not 
have light enough in summer for the leaves of any fruit buds that might form 
on them, and which could, therefore, not mature into fruitage. Thin the new 
growth all over top so that no shoot will shade another or be shaded; those 
that are left being such as extend the main bearing branches, which gardeners 
call "leaders." Often a crowding branch can be propped or braced out into 
open light, and so two branches be relieved with little or no pruning of either; 
with a gain of large fruit-producing area. One other case must be noted: 
that of a tree exhausted so much as to be covered with fruit buds and mak- 
ing no new shoots. A tree in health should make new shoots every year all 
over the top, at least eight inches long. If it does less, the soil is poor, 
or the roots are robbed or dried, or the stem is injured and cannot cjirry tjie 




PRUNING. — no. 1. 



106 



THE FARM. 



bap, or the wood of the top has become unsound. The thing to be done then 
is to cut back the top, reducing it largely, to give the exhausted system less 
to do and more chance to recover. The vexed question of even and odd 
years, or fruitful and barren ones in alternation, which is so important to 
growers of Baldwins, Greenings, and some other Avinter sorts is solved most 
easily by a resolute thinning in the winter preceding the fruitful years, so as 
to reduce the bearing, and increase the wood and bud forming, for the next 
year. 

Pruning Peacli Trees. — A fruit tree overloaded with fruit is very 
unsatisfactory to its owner. The fruit itself is of no more value than half 
the quantity of a better size. Then, too, the tree is often injured, so much 

80 as to cause it to lose a 
year or two recovering. It 
is better to be satisfied Avith 
a small quantity of fruit, 
and this judicious pruning 
brings about. The Prairie. 
Farmer advocates the fol- 
lowing system of pruning 
peach trees: " The main 
branches of a young tree 
should be, early in spring, 
cut back to eighteen inches, 
being careful to leave on 
them any sub-branches 
near their base. The next 
spring the resulting, or 
next crop of branches, 
should be cut back in about 
the same way, and sub- 
branches half of them cut 
clear away, leaving every 
other one, and those not cut 
away cut back one-third or 
one-half. The summer after 
this the trees should give a 
splendid crop of fine fruit 
that will need no thinning. 
The after cuttmg back and 
pruning should be after the same general plan, tliinning out and cutting back 
the upper and outer branches, but never thinning out the small branches 
near the base of the large branches, except as above. As the trees grow 
older it will be necessary to ciit back and thin out more, year by year, and, 
eventually, it will be necessary to cut back half the ntain branches near 
their base at some point just above where a thrifty young twig is growing, 
so as to form a vigorous head." 

Bfecessary Precautions After Pruning. — After pruning the orchard, 
care should be taken to clean up and burn all the brush before the embryo 
insects harboring in it have time to mature. The loose bark should also be 
scraped off and burned, and every cluster of the eggs of the tent caterpillar 
be removed betimes and cast into the fire. Attention to these matters will 
save a great deal of vexation and loss, 




PRUNING. — FIG. 2. 



OUCrtAltP AjS^D VIKEYARi), 



107 



drafting Apple Trees — Apple trees maybe grafted in spring, anytime 
after severe cold weather is past, until the leaveH are fully formed. There 
are many different methods of grafting 
in vogue among nurserymen and or- 
chardists, but for large trees in the or- 
chard, what is called cleft grafting ia 
the one usually practiced. In per- 
forming the operation, the main stem, 
if not more than an inch or two in di- 
ameter, or a branch, or any number of 
them on a large tree, is sawed off, and 
the portion remaining is split down- 
ward two inches or more with a large 
knife or chisel, being careful not to 
bruise or break the bark. Then a cion 
from a tree which we desire to propa- 
gate is cut, with two or three buds 
upon it, as shown in Fig. 1, the lower 
end being cut on each side, forming a 
long, slender wedge. The cleft in the 
stock may be held open witli a small 
hard wood or iron wedge, driven in 
the center. When the cions are pre- 
pared, insert one on each side of the 
cleft, as is shown in Fig. 2, being care- 
ful to have the outside of the wood of 
both cion and stock exactly even, and 
then withdraAV the wedge, and the 
stock will grasp and hold the cions 
firmly in place. The end of the stock 
and the side clefts should then be 
carefully covered with grafting wax, 
for the purpose of excluding air and 

water. To prevent the grafting wax 

sticking to the fingers of the opei'ator, 

a little piece of tallow or other kind of 

grease may be applied to the hand and 

fingers each time, before taking hold 

of the wax. 

When cions are to be taken from 

trees in the same orchard or neighbor- 
hood, they may be cut and inserted 

the same day, even if somewhat ad- 

A'anced in growth of buds; but, as a 

rule, the cions should be taken from 

the trees before the buds begin to 

swell in spring, and then put in a cool 

cellar and rolled in damp moss cloth, 

or buried in earth, where their growth "" 

will be retarded. Grafting trees is a very simple operation, and almost any 

ftoy who can whittle a stick can readily learn how to perform it successfully. 

Make a clean smooth cleft in the stock, and use a sharp knife in preparing 

the cion, and then see that the two join as we have directed, and there is lit- 




108 



THE FAR 



tie danger of failure if the ciona are healthy and in proper condition. Strong, 
tirm one-year-old wood should be used for this purpose; that which is about 
one-quarter to three-quarters of an inch in diameter is the most suitable. 

The apple, pear, plum, and cherry may be grafted in the manner we have 
described, and by almost any one who will try. 

Grafting Wax. — There are a great many recipes given for making 
grafting wax, but the following is, in our opinion, the best: To four pounds 
of resin and one of beeswax add one pint of linseed oil; put in an iron pot, 
heat slowly, and mix well. Pour into cold water, and pull by hand until it 
assumes a light color; work into sticks, and put into a cool place until 
wanted. In using, oil the hands, work the wax until soft, and press it tightly 
around the graft and over the cracks. If the day be warm, it is better to oc- 
casionally moisten the hands 
with water. 

Grafting the Ti^ild 
Cherry. — The common 
black ehei'ry regarded as 
"wild" can be grafted with 
other and best varieties as 
easily as cherries usually 
are. Many of these trees, 
which produce the poorest 
kind of fruit, can all be top 
grafted, and may be made 
to yield an abundance of ex- 
cellent fruit. Only healthy 
trees should be selected for 
grafting, and the cions 
should be in the best condi- 
tion. 

Transplanting I^arge 
Trees. — Many and various 
are the reasons for trans- 
planting large trees. Many 
persons desu-e to remove 
from the forest to their own 
grounds trees of twenty or 
more feet in height for farming, new ornamenting, screens, or shade. Ti'ees 
of more than four inches in diameter should be removed with a ball of earth 
attached. This operation is easily and safely performed in two different 
ways, as the accompanying figures indicate. When the trees are to be re- 
moved long distances, the plan used in Fig. 1 should be adopted. First dig 
around and loosen the tree, care being taken not to injure the roots by dig- 
ging too near the tree. Place the connecting pieces (M) of the standards 
(R R) against the tree, to which fasten by ropes winding cloths or matting 
about the tree, to prevent breaking the bark. One horse attached to the 
rope (B) will easily raise the tree and ball of earth and place it u<pon the 
stone boat or drag (P), upon which it may be transplanted long distances 
without injury. It may be removed from this vehicle to the hole prepared 
for its reception by the same process. 

Another quite common method is to use the rear wheel and axle of a 




TRANSPLANTING LARGE TREES. — FIG. 1. 



OkC [{A H JJ A A U V I KM rAHJj. 



im 



farm wagou. Firmly secure on top of the center of axle a pole (S) twelve 
feet in length, the short end projecting from the axle two feet, to which is 
secured a short chain with hooks. Loosen the tree as before described; 
wind about the tree, close to the ground, matting or old carpet, pass around 
a small chain a number of times, into which catch in the hook, and by low- 
ermg the lever (S) to the ground the tree will assume the position shown in 
Fig. 2. The heavy ball of earth keeps the tree in an upright position, and 
one man holding the lever, and the other leading the horse, the tree is car- 
ried to the place for its reception, and there deposited by raising the lever. 

Care of Trees After Transplanting — Newly transplanted trees that 
are not starting properly should receive attention. The first suggestion is 
always to pour water on the surface. But little, if any, of this moisture 
ever reaches the roots, where it could be beneficial. Experience of late 
years has taught our tree planters that when the soil is firmly pressed, so 
as to come into immediate 
contact with all the roots, 
and of course stop all air 
passages among them, but 
little water after planting is 
needed. Duxing an exces- 
sively dry spell, however, 
several deep holes may be 
made in the soil by means 
of an iron bar, and water 
poured in several times; 
but in ordinary seasons a 
liberal mulch over the sur- 
face will answer. The best 
restorative for a weakly tree 
after transplanting is to 
shade the bark, and this 
may be done by wrapping 
the body loosely with news- 
papers, allowing them to 
extend even to the main 

branches, if large. Moisture over the tops is quite as helpful as at the roots, 
so that a thorough syringing among the branches every evening until active 
growth sets in will answer an excellent purpose. 

Points on Pear Cultiire—The cultivation, until the trees have come 
into their second or third year of bearing, may consist in growing com the 
first year, as it aftbrds considerable protection to the young trees from the 
heat of the first summer. After this some hoed crop, like potatoes, peas 
or beans, may be grown; and it should be fertilized with well-rotted stable 
manure and thoroughly cultivated. This keeps the trees supplied with 
food and the soil loose and friable. Hot, violent manures should never be 
appUed to an orchard, and especially to one of pears. Use an ordinary one- 
horse cultivator, and a good one-horse plow. A good workman will go deep 
enough with such a plow, and not injure the roots as he would with a large 
one. By all means be sure of the efficiency and carefulness of a man before 
admitting him into the orchard with a horse and cultivator or plow. The 
damage a poor man did in one of our orchards in less than half a day would 
not have been covered by two or three months of his wages. A five-year- 




TRANSPLAKTIWa LABGE TREES, 



iio ^lit: FA KM. 

old pear tree in vigorous health is worth fully. $10, and when a dozen sucii 
are injured the aggregate loss is quite an item. The horse should be a 
careful one, accustomed to such Avork. 

Owing to other pressing duties, it occasionally happens that a heavy 
gi'owth of fall grass is permitted in the orchard, after the vegetable crops do 
not longer need cultivation. It should not remain all whiter, especially 
around the trees, as it affords snug retreats for rabbits, field mice, etc.', 
which too frequently gnaw the bark of the young trees, sometimes com- 
pletely girdhng them, and causing death. To* prevent this, in the late fall, 
with a hoe or strong iron rake, remove the grass from around each tree for 
two or three feet, and to make a further protection, ridge up around the 
trees with the plow, this ridge can be easily plowed or cultivated down in 
the spring to give a level surface to the orchard. 

Planting hoed and well-manured crops between the trees supplies them 
with all the matter needed during the first few years. When the trees get 
too large to make it either desirable or profitable to grow such crops, ma- 
nure in some fqrm must be specially applied to make up the deficiency. 
Bone-dust makes a valuable dressing, as does well-rotted stable manure, 
which, no doubt, is the most easily obtainable on the farm. There is no- 
thing which equals Avood-ashes, and we attribiite much of our success in 
raising heavy crops and splendid specimens of pears to the liberal iise of 
this fertilizer. Not only did we use all that we could save on the place, but 
bought liberally at good prices. If enough cannot be secured to put over 
the whole surface spread the ashes around each tree. The best time to ap- 
ply the manure is in late fall or early spring, after the plowing and before 
the harrowing. If there is an undue growth of wood and foliage diminish 
the supply of manure; and it is sometimes well to put the land down to 
clover (never to timothy, wheat, rye or other uncultivated grain), and let it 
remain one or two years in sod. It can then be plowed and planted with 
corn to break the sod, and the ground either used for vegetables or kept fal- 
low — Agriculturist. 

Waste Bones for Trees and Vines — The bones of fish, fowls, and the 
large and small pieces of bones which are purchased with beefsteak and 
mutton, constitiite the very best food for fruit trees and grape vines, if the 
fragments are only placed where the roots can lay hold of them. Instead of 
allowing pieces of bones to be cast into the backyard, as food for stray dogs 
and cats, domestics should be directed to deposit everything of the sort in a 
small tub provided with a cover. As soon as a few pounds have accumu- 
lated, take the tub to some grape \me or fruit tree, dig a hole three or more 
feet long, a foot or two wide, and not less than a foot deep, into which the 
bones are dumped, spread over the bottom of the excavation, and covered 
with the soil. The more the fragments can be spread around, the better, 
but they should be buried so deep that a plow or spade will not reach them. 
The roots of growing vines or fruit trees will soon find the valuable mine of 
rich fertility, and will feed on the elements that will greatly promote the 
growth of healthy wood, and the development of fair and luscious fruit. 

Many horticulturists and farmers purchase bone-dust costing not less than 
two cents a pound, simply to enrich the soil ai'ound and beneath their trees 
and vines. Fragments of bones are jiist as valuable as ground bone, al- 
though their elements of fertility will not be found available in so short a 
time as if the large pieces were reduced to atoms. Nevertheless, if large 
bones be buried three or four feet from a grape vine, the countless numbers 



ORCHARD AND VINEYARD. Ill 

of mouths at the ends of roots will soon dissolve, take up, and appropriate 
every particle. When cast out of the kitchen door, bones are a nuisance; 
whereas, if properly buried, they become a source of valuable fertility. Let 
every person who owns a grape vine or fruit tree save all the bones that pass 
through the Idtchen, and bury them where they will be turned to some 
profit. 

Orchard Management. — In three years, says a writer, I improved the 
production of my fruit trees from fifteen to two hundred bushels, by treat- 
ing them in the following manner: I first reduced the top one-fourth, then 
in the fall I plowed the soil as well as I could, it being quite rocky, and 
turned a short furrow toward the tree. As I worked from them I let the 
plow fall a httle lower, and when between the trees I allowed the plow to 
run deep, so that the water would settle away from them in the spring. I 
hauled a fair quantity of coarse manure, pulverized it well, and marked out 
the hills, measuring each Mil. I planted corn and beans, and harvested a 
nice crop of corn, beans, and pumpkins. The following spring I repeated 
the same form of cultivation, and harvested the second crop of corn, beans, 
and pumpkins, which paid me to satisfaction. My trees began to grow very 
fast; and that fall I harvested seventy bushels of very good apples. The 
following spring I manured for the third time, planted it to potatoes, which 
grew very large, but rotted very badly. I made up the loss, however, by 
harvesting 200 bushels of large and natural fruit. I changed the production 
of a yellow bellflower tree from three-fourths of a bushel to seven bushels, 
and sold them for $1.25 per barrel, which I think a very good return for my 
labor. From my experience I am of the opinion that most trees have too 
much top for the amount of roots and a deficiency of nourishment for pro- 
ducing a developed fruit. I like fall or winter pruning. Always cover the 
cut with grafting wax or a thick paint. After removing the limbs by thin- 
ning out the center of the tree, it has a tendency to make it grow broad. 
Too many varieties are bad, and hardy stock is all that is needed. 

Tlie Roots of Fi-uit Trees — While fruit growers are aware now that the 
roots of trees and plants extend to a great distance, still it is difficult to 
break away from the old habit of manuring about the trunks, trusting that 
somehow or other the fertilizer will be appropriated, and fearing that if 
spread broadcast it may some way become lost. It will be found difficult 
to place manure in an orchard or vineyard where the plants will not reach 
it, and if properly spread it will not be lost. Should it sink into the subsoil 
the roots will follow it and bring it back by the ear, as a teacher would a 
truant school-boy. We have observed the roots of apple trees in sand pits 
extending downwards ten feet. We recently followed the roots of an old 
grape vine twenty feet under the location of a defunct buildiag. When we 
stopped digging, the roots were as large as a little finger, were four feet be- 
neath the surface, and probably extended ten feet farther. A pile of ma- 
nure about the base of this vine would have done but little good. Know- 
ing the extent and habit of root growth, it is apparent that cultivation close 
about the trunks of the trees or vines is not necessary; and is often produc- 
tive of more harm than good in marring and breaking, besides tempting pro- 
fanity on the part of the plowman. 

How to Fertilize Fmit Trees. — Here and there on all farms and in 
most fruit gardens will be seen an occasional tree or grape vine which seems 
to lack vigor— does not grow well, and yet seems to have no particular di^■^ 



112 



THE FARM. 



ease. The probabilities are that the ti-ee is dying of ptarvatiou and needs a 
liberal supply of food. When you give it this ration do not pile a load of 
manure around the trunk of the tree or the body of a grape vine. That is 
just the place whei-e it will do the least good. Nearest the trunk of the tree 
the roots are all large; the fibrous roots — the feeders — are farther off, near 
the ends of the roots. These only can take up the nutriment. It is always 
safe to assume that the roots extend as far from the trunk in every direction 
as do the limbs of the trees, and to properly fertilize, spread the manure all 
over that area. Then fork it in, and you have done a good work and done it 
well. K some disease has begun its work on the tree, you will put the tree 
in a healthy, vigorous condition, the better enabUng it to successfiilly con- 
tend against its enemies. We have seen numerous old pear and apple trees, 
bearing poor and gnarled fruit, which the owners consider of no value, 
which such treatment as we have outlined above would restore to their 
original usefulness. 

A Belgian Fruit Gratlierer. — We illustrate a novel little invention for 
gatheiing fi*uit as used by the Belgians. It is made as follows: Take a 
pole ten or twelve feet long, and on top of this attach a thin disk, as shown 
hy the illustration, about six inches in diameter, set with wooden teeth, just 
like the teeth of a hayrake. Carefully placing this under a pear so that the 
pear rests on the disk, and giving a slight 
fl I H n twist, it will at once detach and bring down the 

yln _j\ (^ |_j., fl Ijfl fruit Avithout marring or injuring it in anyway. 

^U c-\\ ~ ^'^ How to Reiie-*v an Orchard. — We would 

plow the orchard in the fall, and then either 
cross-plow it in the spring or cultivate it thor- 
oughly, according to its condition. Thorough 
working ihe ground Avill help the orchard and 
also the crop. It should be plowed shallow, 
especially under the trees, and care should be 
taken not to break off or mutilate the roots. 
Much damage is done to orchards by careless plomng. Corn is the best 
hoed ci'op for an orchard, and beans the next best. Potatoes should never 
be planted in an orchard, as they exhaust the potash from the soil, and this 
is just what the apple trees res^uire. Barley, or spring rye, is the best 
adapted to be sown for the seeding. Under the apple trees the grain 
should be thinly scattered, for much seed woiild only be wasted on 
account of the shade, but the grass seed should be put on thickly. The lea^st 
exhaustive crop should always be grown in an orchard, or else the trees will 
be robbed of needed sustenance; hence it is always best to pasture the 
ground rather than mow it: nothing will run an orchard down so fast as to 
make it a meadow, as it is a double robbery. The ground may be plowed in 
the spring, but for an orchard, we would prefer turning it over in the early 
autumn, in order that the trees may have the full benefit of the decayed sod 
and the more mellow soil. 

Errors in Fruit Tree Culture— Deep planting is one eiTOr— to plant 
a tree rather shallower than it formerly stood is really the right way, while 
many plant a tree as they would a post. Boots are of two kinds — the young 
and tender rootlets, composed entirely of cells, the feeders of the trees, 
always found near the surface getting air and moisture; and roots of over 
one year old, which serve only as supporters of the trees, and as conductor^ 




BELGIAN FKUIT GATHERER. 



ORCHARD AND VINEYARD. 113 

of its food. Hence the injury that ensues when the delicate rootlets are so 
deeply buried in earth. Placing fresh or green manure in contact with the 
young roots is another great error; the place to put manure is on the sur- 
face, where the elements disintegrate, dissolve, and carry it down'ward. 
Numerous forms of fungi are generated amd reprodiiced by the application 
of such manures directly to the jjoots, and they immediately attack the tree. 
It is very well to enrich the soil at transplanting the tree, but the manure, if 
it be in contact with or very near the roots, should be thoroughly decom- 



Fmit Tree Ciiltiire. — A writer in the Western Agriculturist gives 
these rules, which are of wide application: 1. Instead of " trimming up " 
trees according to the old fashion, to make them long-legged and long- 
armed, trim them down, so as to make them even, snug and symmetrical. 
' 2. Instead of manuring heavily in a small circle at the foot of the tree, spread 
the manure, if needed at all, broadcast over the whole surface. 3. Instead 
of spading a small circle about the stem, cultivate the whole surface broad- 
cast. 4. Prefer a well pulverized, clean surface in an orchard, with a 
moderately rich soil, to heavy manuring and a surface covered with a hard 
crustand weeds and grass. 5. Remember that it is better to set out ten trees 
with all the necessary care to make them live and flourish, than to set out a 
hundred trees, and have them all die from carelessness. 6. Remember that 
tobacco is a poison, and will kill insects rapidly if properly applied to them, 
and is one of the best drugs for freeing fruit trees rapidly of small vermin. 

Protection of Trees. — Mr. A. M. Daniels, in an address before the 
Chenango County Farmers' Club, in relation to the protection of trees, stated 
as the result of his observation that, " when the fruit is stunulated to rapid 
growth by an abundance of juices in the tree, it is affected by the hot sun 
and drying wind. In the disease called the frozen sap blight, so disastrous 
to young orchards when it affects the trunk, the tree dies. This occurs more 
frequently after severe winters, by inactive or arrested circulation. Young 
orchards should be protected fi'om the hot sun or cold of winter by the use 
of straw, cloth, or board boxes. The scorching rays of the sun should never 
be allowed to come on the body of a tree, and Nature by the foliage provides 
against it. No fruit tree can stand freezing and thawing in spiing without 
being injured by it. The great object to be attained in raising a young 
orchard is ripened and mature growth. When that is attained we are on the 
road to success. Late growth should not be stimulated." 

Fruit Cellars. — Fruit cellars need careful oversight; for the late sorts 
to come to proper perfection, and to keep well, they must be in a tempera- 
ture as low as may be without freezing; it must not be forgotten that Iruit in 
ripening gives off heat, and this must be regulated by the admission of cold 
air from without. In ripening, a considerable amount of carbonic acid is 
given off, which would be of use in retarding the ripening, but very danger- 
ous if allowed to accumulate in the cellar of a dwelling, hence ventilation by 
means of a chimney, or in some other manner, is a matter that must be 
attended to. 

Thinning Frnit. — An orchardist who makes his trees bear a moderate 
crop every year, of larger and finer fruit than when crowded, gives the fol- 
lowing directions for doing the work: A light ladder is used to give ready 
access to any part of the tree. The bi-anch is held in the left hand, wkile 



114 THJS FARM. 

with sheep shears in the right, every bunch of apples is cut off, leaving a part 
of the stem of each fruit. This is done as soon as the blossoms have fallen, 
and before the young fruit has attained any size. When this branch is en- 
tirely cleaned, the next branch is skipped, and thQ third cleaned of the fruit 
like the first, and so on until evei-y alternate branch is divested Of its fruit. 
This work is not done on the small limbs here and there over the tree, but 
on main branches, and equally on both sides ot the tree. Of medium-sized 
trees, an active man will go over fifteen or twenty in a day.. 

Destroying tlie Plum Ciii-cwlio. — A great deal of useless advice has 
been given out concerning easy methods of destroying the plum and peach 
curculio. In most parts of the country it is impossible to raise plums unless 
one exercises a daily warfare against the insects. Persons who have two or 
three plum trees about the yard should succeed in raising fruit enough for 
their own use, but this they are seldom able to accomplish. Tke less trees' 
one has, the greater will be the proportionate number of insects to attack 
them. 

Such methods as burning coal tar under the trees, hanging cobs, satu- 
rated with molasses, among the limbs, are usually of no avail in saving a 
crop of plums or peaches. The only sure method is persistent catching. 
The curculios spend their nights near the base of the tree, under chips and 
barks. Early in the morning they ascend the trees, to lay their eggs in the 
young fruit. 

There are two modes of catching them. The one devised by Mr. Ransom, 
of Benton Harbor, Mich., is to nicely smooth the earth about the base of the 
trees, and to lay a few small blocks of wood or chips on the surface. The 
beetles crawl under these for shelter, and can be taken very early in the 
morning before they ascend the trees. The chips should be examined as 
soon as one can see in the morning. This is the method most practiced in 
the extensive peach belt of Michigan. 

The other method is to spread a large sheet under the tree, and jar the 
beetles off on to it by means of one or two quick blows Avith a long-handled 
mallet or bumper. Each of the large branches should be struck, and the 
mallet should be wound with cloth to prevent injury to the trees. This 
practice should be followed early in the morning also, as when the days get 
warm the beetles are too lively to be caught. Many of the best peach and 
plum growers practice both these methods. In the case of a few trees about 
a yard both should be used, and there -will be little doubt as to a good 
reward in fruit. The practice should be followed up every morning for a 
couple of weeks after the blossoms fall, and at wider intervals until the in- 
sects disappear. A sheet may be stretched over a large wooden frame for 
convenience in handling. 

A Suggestion to Gro^wers of Plums. — If you want a good crop of 
plums or damsons, as soon as your trees are out of blossom, and the fruit 
formed, keep a hen with a brood of yoiing chickens tied beneath the tree, 
and give her a range as wide as the boughs of the tree, and she and her 
brood will destroy every curculio, and reward your care and forethought 
with a crop of luscious plums. Keep the chickens there until the fruit be 
half or more than half groAvn. 

Manure for Fruit Trees._It is best to abstain from the use of stimu- 
lating animal manures, unless decomposed, and previously composted with 
mellow soil. Nothing is better than Avood ashes to induce a sound, healthy 



oliUJIAHJ) AND VINEYARD. 115 

growth aud good yield. The scrapings of the wood pile mixed with ashes, 
decayed leaves, and road washings, are all of value as manures. Salt 
sprinkled around the trees, or applied in the form of brine,* is frequently 
beneficial, especially where the fruit falls before ripening. 

Ma,xiius for Fruit Grovt^ers. — All fruit trees like a rather dry, rich soil. 
On a cold clayey bottom diseases are usually frequent. Do not plant deep; 
cut off tap roots, and encourage surface fibres. Surface manuring is the 
best mode of doing this after the tree is planted. Do not allow anything to 
grow vigorously around your trees the first year of planting, nor allow the 
soil to become hard or dry. 

Inisects Iivjurious to Fruit Trees. — To keep the insects from the trees 
requires the closest observance, and, soon as found, destruction must com- 
mence. Their habits should be learned as much as possible. When the in- 
sects are in the winged state is the time they lay their eggs. They multiply 
with astonishing rapidity, one insect often hatching thousands in a single 
season. Jime is the time most of the insects lay their eggs, and at that time 
bonfires should be built at night, when the insects will fly into them and be 
destroyed; or, if you have only a few trees in the garden, get some bottles 
^vith wide mouths, and fill half full with a mixture of water, molasses, and 
vinegar, and tie up in the trees; empty in a week, and fill again. And at 
that time (June) the bark should be washed with soft soap, the trunk and 
the limbs as far as can be reached; also sprinkle a handful of coarse salt 
around the roots of the tree — we have found it valuable. Put coal ashes, 
about a peck, around the base of each tree, as it not only drives away the 
grubs, but acts as a fertilizer. The best way to kill insects on the tree is to 
dust air-slaked lime over it when the dew is on the tree; or, steep tobacco 
stems in boiling water, and, when cool, syringe the tree. 

Birds are of great value in destroying insects, and they should have the 
best of care given them, to encourage their building and living on the place, 
especially our common sparrow (not the English sparrow), wrens, bluebirds, 
robins, quails, etc. Don't allow them to be frightened or shot at, and they 
will pay well. 

Toads and bats destroy a great many insects in the spring. As the green 
fruit drops it should be gathered up and fed to the hogs, for it contains a 
worm Avhich burrows in the ground. Where small quantities of trees are 
grown, as in the garden, it is a good plan to fence in the trees, and let the 
hogs or chickens eat the green, wormy fruit as it falls; we have known plum 
trees to bear enormous and paying crops when treated in this way. 

Pear Bliglxt and Peacli Yello-ws. — Pear blight and peach yellows are 
subjects of prolific and dissenting discussion at every horticultural meeting. 
Mr. Satterthwait, in a report on the diseases of fruit trees to the Pennsyl- 
vania State Horticultural Society, points out the great ditference between the 
two diseases; namely, that while the yellows is extremely contagious, no one 
need fear to plant a pear tree where a blighted one has been removed. He 
stated that he had thousands of trees, vigorous and entirely healthy, that 
were planted beside the stumps of trees killed by the pear blight, and not 
one was ever affected. He regards it as proved to a certainty tiiat pear 
blight is an entirely different disease in its nature from the peach yellows, 
aud be mentioned, as additional proof, that it is a usual occurrence for pear 
trees to be locally affected, or in a single branch, without the disease spread- 
ing, and the tree entirely recovering its health and vigor. 



116 THE FARM. 

Mr, Satterthwait reported favorably of the Kieffer pear, about which opin- 
ions are so variable With him it has proven not only wonderfully produc- 
tive, but handsome in appearance and gaining high prices in market. He 
beheves the quality of this much-disputed pear depends largely on properly 
ripening the fruit. His plan consists in packing the pears in wooden boxes, 
containing about one bushel each, and placing them in a cool, dry cellar, one 
on top of the other. In this connection it may be Avell to state that C. M. 
Hovey, of Boston, is credited with saying that the Kieffer is the least satis- 
factory of all his eight hundred varieties of the pear — another indication that 
the Kieffer gives different results in different localities under varying circum- 
stances. 

Tomato I.e»ves a. Remedy for tlie Ciirciilio. — " I planted a peach or- 
chard," writes M. Story, of the Society of Horticulture of France, " and the 
trees grew well and strongly. They just commenced to bud when they were 
invaded by the curcuho (pulyon), which insects were followed, as frequently 
happens, by ants. Having cut some tomatoes, the idea occurred to me that, 
by placing some of the leaves around the trunk and branches of the peach 
trees, I might preserve them from the rays of the sun, which are very power- 
ful. My surprise was great, upon the following day, to find the trees entire- 
ly free from their enemies, not one remaining, except here and there where 
a curled leaf prevented the tomato from exercising its influence. These 
leaves I carefully unrolled, placing upon them fresh ones from the tomato 
vine, with the result of banishing the last insect and enabling the trees to 
grow Avith luxuriance. Wishing to carry still further my experiment, I 
steeped in water some leaves of the tomato, anrl nprinkled Avith this infusion 
other plants, roses, and oranges. In two days these uere also free from the 
innumerable insects Avhich covered them, and I felt sure that, had I used 
the same means Avith my melon patch, I should have met Avith the same re- 
sult. I therefore deem it a duty I owe to the Society of Horticulture to make 
known this singular and useful property of the tomato leaves, which I die- 
covered by the merest accident." 

The Codling Motli and Otlier Enemies of the Apple. — This old 
enemy of the farmer is noAv getting in his work upon the growing apples. 
Where an orchard is infested Avith them, Ave know of no reliable method cf 
getting rid of them and saving the crop. The curculio, Avhich is so destruc- 
tive to the plum crop, is of late quite as damaging to the apples, in some 
sections doing much more harm than the former; and there is still another 
pest which is Avorking a terrible harm to the crop — the apple maggot ( Trip- 
p«ta PomotieUa). This burrows in the apple, often several maggots being 
found in the same apple. The eggs are laid by a small fly, somewhat resem- 
bling the common house-fly, but much smaller, through a small opening in 
the skin, made with its OA'ipositor. 

The best guard against these pests is for every farmer who has an orchard 
to keep sheep or sAvine running in it all the season through. These Avill eat 
up every infected apple and thus destroy the larvae, which, if left unmo- 
lested, will bring forth a crop of pests for next year's crop. If every one 
Avould do this, it is safe to assume that the ravages of these pests would be 
materially decreased. 

Diseased Citiejrjfy TreesM-^Many of our neighbors' cherry trees are be- 
coming knotty, and dying, writes a correspondent of The Rural New Torker. 
A lady narrated in our hearing, a few evenings since, her experience with a 



ORCHARD AND VINEYARD. 117 

tree of the same description. A large tree, of the common red variety, 
stood by the kitchen door. The body and limbs were knotty and rough, the 
fruit scanty and worthless; the dead leaves in fall were continually di'il'ting 
over the porch and walk; in fact, in the good housewife's eyes, the tree was 
simply a nuisance, and she importuned her husband to remove it. He re- 
fused to do this, however, and she determined to kill the tree. Fii'st, a bar- 
rel of beef brine was poured about the roots, and this was followed by boil- 
ing suds, evei-y wash day. The result was satisfactory, Imt far from that 
anticipated. The following season the tree was loaded with superior fruit, 
and was free from all knots and other defects. The enormot s crop and 
changed appearance of the tree might not have been attributable to the ap- 
plication of brine and soap-suds, yet we believe the experiment to be worthy 
of trial. 

Kerosene as an. Insect Destroyer. — Kerosene is a cheap and eflective 
insecticide where it can be appUed without injury to the growing tree or 
plant, but to what extent it can be safely used has not been fully deter- 
mined, the results obtained not being uniform. Spraying kerosene upon 
the leaves of cotton killed the plant. The bark of elm-trees, around which 
bands of felt saturated with kerosene had been applied, was destroyed 
wherever the oil reached it. The trunks of orange-trees which had been 
wet with kerosene to destroy scale insects were denuded of the greater part 
of the bark to which the oil had been appUed. On the other hand, a bark 
louse, which was very abundant upon some ivy, was destroyed by the appli- 
cation of pure kerosene, with no apparent bad results to the vine. 

Protection Against Peai' Bliglit. — The Gardener^s Monthly gives a 
statement from G. R. Dykeman, of Shippensburg, Pa., of his experiments in 
applying oil to the trunks of fruit trees — a practice which has been strongly 
recommended for its beneficial effects, among other things as a protection 
against pear bUght. Mr. D. applied oil last year to 600 peach trees, 200 
apple, several pear and plum trees, and 100 quince. All the peach trees, 
five years planted, were killed; the other trees were not injured. Other 
peach trees were painted with refuse lard and linseed oil, and these are all 
dead. The object in greasing was to keep the rabbits off. Oil is sometimes 
applied for the white scale. 

Injuries to Trees. — Injuries to trees should be repaired as soon as dis- 
covered. Limbs broken by snow and ice must be sawed off to make a 
smooth wound, and this covered with paint, varnish, or wax. Barking by 
mice or rabbits often looks more serious than it really is. The majority of 
cases will recover if the wound is protected by a thick poultice of cow-dung 
and clayey loam, bound on with a piece of coarse material. In very severe 
cases the tree may be saved by connecting the bark above and below the 
wound, by means of twigs of the same tree; the ends are chamfered, and 
inserted under the bark above and below, to bridge over the wound, cover- 
ing the exposed parts with grafting wax. 

Protection Against tlie Plnni Curculio. — A fruit grower States that 
he kept a plum tree from curculios by sprinkling the ground under the tree 
with com meal. This induced the chickens to scratch and search. The 
meal was strewn every morning from the time the trees blossomed until the 
fruit was large enough to be out ot danger. The consequence was that the 
fowls picked up the curculios vnih the meal, s.ni the tree, t&;ng saved from 
the presence of the insect, was wonderfully fruitl'ul, 



118 THE FARM, 

Suggestions to Fruit Grovrers.— I find that Imie, wood asbes and old 

iron put around the roots of declining fruit trees have a very beneficial 
effect, writes a fruit grower of many years' experience. These fertilizers 
restore the tree to a healthy condition, and also greatly improve the fruit in 
quality and quantity. I made the apphcation on a Windsap and Never Fail, 
about half a bushel of mixed lime and ashes to each, and dug it in with a 
hoe some six feet around the trunk, and put the old iron immediately 
around the base of each. 

The trees put forthwith renewed vigor, bloomed abundantly, and yielded 
a good crop of fruit. An excellent wash for trees may be made thus: Heat 
an ounce of salsoda to redness in an iron pot, and dissolve it in one gallon 
of water, and while warm apply it to the trunk. After one applica- 
tion the moss and old bark will drop off and the trunk will be quite 
smooth. The wash has highly recuperative properties, making old trees 
bear anew. 

I have tried soft soap as a Avash with good results, and also a coating of 
lime in the spring season, which is a fine specific for old trees. The ques- 
tion is often asked, is it best to manure trees in the fall or spring ? I have 
found the summer season to be a good time; I have much faith in mulching, 
especially young trees, for several seasons after they are planted. Apple 
trees are said to have two growths during the season — the secondary growth 
takes place after midsummer, hence it is that a top-dressing of good manure, 
and also coarse litter, facilitates the late gi'owth, and often produces very 
marked results in the habit and formation of the tree. 

The good effect that mulching has to yoiing trees is, that it wards off tbe 
intense heat of the sun from the tender roots, and also has a tendency to 
hold moisture. A good top-dressing of stable manure in the fall, around 
young trees, with a good many corn cobs cast over the surface of the soil, 
give satisfactory results. 

Ants on Young Trees. — An authority says that ants do not destroy 
trees. The ants are after the lice which are hurting the trees. These Uce 
exude a sweet substance which attracts the ants, and the ants do no harm. 
To get rid of the lice make a solution of whale-oil soap, and add to a pailfiil 
one drachm of carbolic acid. Syringe or spray this on the under side of the 
leaves and it will either kill or drive away tbe lice, and the ants will be seen 
no more. 

Diseased Peach Trees. — The following is said to be a sure remedy for 
the yellows in peach trees: " One part of saltpetre to two of salt, placed 
close to the body of a tree before a rain. It seems not only to destroy any 
fungoid growth of vermin which may be infesting the roots, but to act as an 
excellent fertilizer." 

Suggestion Regarding Apple Trees. — It is a good idea to wrap the 
trunks of apple trees with burlap sacks, and to examine the wrappings 
every few days, or at least every week, to ascertain if any of the grubs or 
worms of the codling moth have found their way into them, that they may 
be destroyed. 

The Peach Borer — A fruit-grower placed tobacco-stems around the 
trunks of peach trees, and there is not the slightest sign of a borer in any of 
the trees so treated. He set the stems around the butts of the trees, and 
tied them at the top. Itr keeps off rabbits as well in winter. 



ORQHARJJ AND VINEYARD. 119 

Fruit Growing Jottiiigs. — "Line upon line, precept upon precept," 
says a Southern fruit grower, must be written regarding the proper manner 
of planting out fruit trees; not that there exists a great diversity of opinion, 
but because so little heed is paid to the plain teachings of nature and com- 
mon sense. " The way father or grandfather did it " is authority for the ma- 
jority, and they seek no further knowledge. 

Now the world moves, and many new and valuable methods have been 
devised which insure the desired kind and quality of fruit, hasten maturity 
and prevent decay. The non-progressive orchardist sells his fruit for a 
nominal figure, Avhenever he has any to sell, which is not often, and is con- 
tiuually complaining because his orchard " doesn't pay." It does pay for 
all the labor bestowed upon it, but it will not pay for what it does not 
receive. 

Any kind of a fruit tree is an enormous feeder if it produces any amount 
of fi'uit. Who can reasonably expect to receive barrel upon barrel from any 
given tree, year after year, when nothing is fed to it ? As well might the 
owner expect to work a week on the memory of a Sunday dinner. 

Trees should be led, therefore, and liberally, too, if large crops of fine 
fruit are expected from them. 

The old-fashioned way of crowding trees in the space devoted to orchard 
purposes is still pei-sisted in, notwithstanding the teachings of nature to the 
contrary. Trees are crowded in the rows like lodgers in a tenement house, 
and the results are as disastrous in one case as in the other. Trees, like 
human beings, need air and light. They raasl have these, or their lives do 
not reach three score years and ten. Fruit will not grow in the shade, and it 
is beyond the power of any man to cause it to do so. 

'Tis true, when trees are young, a proper space seems unreasonably 
large — there seems to be a waste, but there really is none. It is question- 
able if planting small crops, like strawberries, melons, tomatoes, etc., is ad- 
visable, even in the earlier stages of growth, and it certainly is not unless a 
liberal quantity of some proper fertilizer is applied. As the tree enlarges 
and reaches out its arm-like branches, it asks for more food; it also asks 
that God's sunlight may be permitted to kiss it from topmost branch to root, 
and unless this request is granted it shoots skyward, bearing no fruit except 
upon its highest branches, and becomes liable to be attacked by numerous 
diseases. 

Who has not noticed that a tree, standing solitary and alone, always 
bears a liberal quantity of fruit ? Who has not noticed that such trees are 
invariably healthy ? Who has not remarked that if the entire orchard was 
like this or that solitary tree, there Avould be money in fruit growing ? Must 
so plain a lesson be unheeded ? Can we not learn so simple a lesson with- 
oiit paying the immense price we do for tuition ? The number of trees upon 
a given area does not determine the value of the orchard. If they are in ex- 
cess of the proper number, they certainly are, comparatively, of little worth. 

One argument used by those who favor close planting is that the shade 
thereby produced kills the grass and weeds which would steal the life-blood 
of the tree. This argument is born of pure laziness, and if carried into 
effect, as it too often is, the tree is deprived of its means of thrift, that its 
loafing owner may not blister his hands or burn his neck in his efforts to 
keep grass and weeds from choking his trees. 

We have often walked through the orange groves on the lower Mississippi 
and been amazed at the imbecility so extensively displayed. A dense forest 
instead of an orchard, dead limbs and clinging moss, close thorny tops Avith 



120 THE FARM. 

small, sour, gnarly, diseased fruit on the extremities, is the rule. Occasion- 
ally we find an orchard owned by a man who uses his brains for some useful 
purpose, and there we find fine trees, with sunshine all around them, with 
Mgkt, open branches, clean and smooth; large, perfect fruit on every twig 
and branch from top to bottom, far better in quality than his neighbor pro- 
duces. In the first instance the fruit is difficult to dispose of, and prices are 
ruinous. The owner is always in debt and always will be. In the other 
case the fruit finds eager purchasers at remunerative figures. The owner 
"gets ahead" in the world by using a small modicum of brains with his 
muscle. 

In raising fruit trees for profit, the following general principles should 
not be overlooked: 1. Effective drainage; 2. Thorough preparation; 3. Lib- 
eral fertilization; 4. Procuring best varieties; 5. Intelligent cultivation; and 
each of these general principles may be sub-divided, and each will afford 
the owner a theme for constant study. 

That fruit growing, as now practiced, is non-paying, we are ready to 
admit; that it may be made immensely profitable, we aonfidently assert. To 
attain this desired object something must be done besides blindly treading 
in the footsteps of old ways and expecting nature to perform impossibilities. 

The whole Southern country can be made a vast fruit-field. Any and 
every man may literally " sit iinder his own vine and fig tree." Millions can 
be annually added to our material wealth. There need be no poverty in 
such a country, and there will be none in the near future, when our almost 
boundless resources are more fully developed. 

"What Pears Sliall I Gro^v 1 —What is said regarding the growing of 
apples, pears, field crops, floirers, or any plant or crop having a place in our 
agi-icultural or gardening operations, must be said with reference to certain 
Avants, conditions, circumstances, or localities, if the directions would pos- 
sess any value. No rule suits every case; no crop or plant is applicable to 
every locality; no advice meets evei-y condition. Still, there are certahi 
well-understood piinciples which are of value, because embodying the accu- 
mulated results of the best practice, under varying conditions and circum- 
stances. 

Now, as regards pears, a farmer or gardener who is to set a number of 
trees in spring would naturally ask, shall I set Dwarfs or Standards ? To 
this there might be given several answers, and they would take shape some- 
thing after this form: For profit, for permanency, for market purposes, the 
Standard; for quick returns at the expense of short life, for grounds of small 
extent, for family uses, the Dwarf. The Standards are long-lived, grow 
larger, and produce more fi'uit (one or two varieties excepted) than the 
Dwarfs. Besides, the trees seem to have the habit of growing wood for 
future use— a good quality where one is planting for profit and permanency. 
The Dwarfs, on the other hand, come into bearing young, are well, adapted 
for garden culture, or where a few pears are wanted for family use, but at 
ten or a dozen years old have seen their best days. 

The tree is most at home in a rather heavy loam, but it must be warm 
and rich, kept clean and mellow by frequent culture— something the trees 
delight in during the growing season. Animal manure, wood ashes, and 
farm compost are the best fertilizers, and these, as is well understood, 
should be applied in the fall. The best pear-growers are united in the belief 
that thorough and systematic pruning — not with saAV and knife, on the 
butchering principle, but the pinching off" all surplus young shoots, when 



b R Off A nh A N 1) VINE YA R D . i2i 

liot over four to six inches long— regulates the growth and welfare of the 
trees, and has a tendency to induce the maturity of the fruit spurs, by which 
means an earlier and better quality of fruit is obtained, while the tree itself 
is kept uniform, well balanced and handsome. If those not experienced in 
pear culture are to set out trees, they certainly cannot have a better guide 
than to ascertain from growers in their own localities the varieties best 
adapted to their soil, situation, local circumstances, rather than to learn these 
points by their own, perhaps expensive, experience. A day spent in obtain- 
ing this information among one's neighbors will be time well used. 

After all, one likes to see varieties. So here is one, made up after much 
study and inquiry, which it is believed will not vary greatly from the list 
which a hundred of the best growers in the best pear sections of New Eng- 
land would recommend. It is true some we have placed high on the hst 
might be put down a peg or two, and others brought to the top which we 
have placed further down; but a list of the best eight varieties would be very 
likely to include these sorts, in about these positions: 1. Bartlett, a general 
favorite, of admirable quality and always salable at the highest price. 2. 
Seckel, high flavor, productive, uniformly bringing a good price in market. 
3. Sheldon, a fine grower and good bearer, selling for the highest price. 4. 
Beurre d'Anjou, an excellent, productive and profitable sort. 5. Duchesse 
d'Angouleme, very popular and of the highest quality. 6. Beurre Bosc, an 
esteemed late sort, high flavored and much in demand as a market pear. 7. 
Lawrence, a good bearing sort, one of the best winter pears. 8. Vicar of 
Wakefield, very productive, and, as it ripens out of season of most others, 
finds a ready market at good prices. 

Girdling Fruit Trees. — Some years ago, on an Iowa farm, a span of 
spirited horses, hitched to a wagon, got away from the driver and ran 
through the orchard, running over and badly barking some dozen trees. 
This was early in June. The next year those trees, and especially the 
limbs most barked and scarred, were full of fruit, while ther6 was a very 
limited quantity on the balance of the orchard. 

But what is the philosophy of this girdling trees or vines to make them 
bear fruit? Trees and vines do not grow merely by the absorption of 
moisture and material direct from the earth. It is true the roots take up 
from the earth the water and mineral matter necessary for plant growth, but 
it does not go directly to the part where it is to stay. But these go up, not 
between the bark and wood, but in the body of the tree or vine to the leaves, 
where it is combined with the carbon which is absorbed by the leaves, and 
goes through Nature's secret laboratory of combining water, mineral and 
carbon, until they are sufficiently digested to be used as wood growth, when 
it passes downward and is deposited in the infinitesimal cells beneath the 
bark. So that the growth is made by the downward flow of this prepared 
material for wood growth. 

Now, if the tree or vine be girdled on the body or limbs, this prepared 
sap cannot pass below Avhere the bark is taken off, and consequently that 
part above the girdle receives more than its share of sap, while none is sup- 
plied to the body below the girdle. Thus the limbs are crowded with growth 
food, which causes the development of fruit buds— makes the limbs grow 
faster and the fruit larger. But this process, if the main body of the tree is 
operated on, will in the end ruin the tree. The body and roots must have 
neurishraent as well as the branches, and this girdling deprives them of this 
support. If this system is practiced at all, it shoiild be only a part, leaving 



i22 THE FARM. 

the ungirdled limbs to supply nourishment to the balance of the tree. JuD6 
is the time girdling is done, which is only intended as preparatory to the 
next year's crop. It is claimed, however, that girdhng in June makes a more 
perfect development of the fruit then on the limbs. 

Girdling is done by taking out a rim of bark entirely around the tree, limb 
or vine, not over one-fourth of an inch wide. Sometimes this space is healed 
up the first year, but certataly the second year, if the tree be not too feeble 
and sickly. Wb advise all to go slowly and carefully in this matter, but it is 
worthy of an experiment by all. 

But yet there are many things which need studying, and diverse mattenB 
should be reconciled. One contends that girdling stops the rapid growth of 
the tree, and causes a more abundant fruitage. Another that girdling 
causes an abnormal growth of the limb, and the largely-increased pro- 
duction of fruit. Great are the mysteries of Nature. 

Covei'ing for Woiiiicls of Trees. — It often happens that, either by in- 
tention, as in pruning, or by accident, trees are wounded in various ways. 
A common practice is to cover large wounds with coal tar; but this is ob- 
jected to by some as injurious to the tree. Experiments made in the or- 
chards and gardens of the Pomological Institute, at Euthlegen, in Germany, 
go to show, however, that its true use is not injurious; but that, on the con- 
trary, a callous readily forms under the tar, on the edges of the wound, and 
that the wounded part is thus protected from decay. There is, neverthe- 
less, another objection: for if the tar is applied a little too thick, the sun 
melts it, and it runs down on the bark of the tree. This can be obvia-ted by 
mixing and stirring and thus incorporating with the tar about three or four 
times its weight of powdered slate, known as slate-flour — the mixture being 
also knoAvn as plastic slate and used for roofing purposes. It is easily ap- 
plied with an old knife or flat stick, and though it hardens on the surface, 
it remains soft and elastic underneath. The heat of the sun does not melt it, 
nor does the coldest winter weather cause it to crack— neither does it peel oft". 

The same mixture is also useful for other purposes in the garden. Leaky 
water-pots, barrels, pails, gutters, sashes, etc., can be easily repaired with 
it, and much annoyance and loss of time be thus avoided. It will stick to 
any surface, provided it be not oily; and as it does not harden when kept in 
a mass, it is always ready for use. A gallon will last for a long time. 

A most excellent preparation for small wounds and for grafting, is thus 
pi-epared: Melt a pound of rosin over a slow fire. When melted, take it 
from the fire and add two ounces of balsam of fir (Canada balsam), or two 
ounces of Venice turpentine (not spirits of turpentine), stirring it constantly. 
As'soon as it is cool enough, mix in four to six ounces of alcohol of 95 degrees 
strength — according to the season — until it is as thick as molasses. It keeps 
well in close-corked bottles for a long time. Should it become too thick, by 
the gradual evaporation of the alcohol, it is easily thinned by putting the 
bottle m warm water and stu'ring in sufficient alcohol to bring it to a proper 
fluidity. It is applied with a brush. 

This preparation is much better than liquid grafting wax composed of 
resin, beef-tallow and spirits of turpentine, which often granulates. . If 
there be any danger that the cions will dry up by evaporation, they may, 
beneficially, be brushed over with this composition, it being first made more 
flxiid by adding alcohol. By this means I succeeded, in February of last 
year, in grafting a single eye of ^Egle Sepinaria upon a lemon tr«e, in a dry 
sitting-room, without the use of atay glass covering. 



ORCHARD AND VINEYARD. 123 

Preserving Fruit—Light and heat are the ageuts m ripemng fruits. 
The sagacious poniologist, therefore, keeps them in a dark place aud at as 
low a temperature as possible short of freezing. Heat and moisture cause 
decay. Hence the fruit room, in addition to being kept cool, is also kept dry. 
These three conditions were observed by Professor Myce in his system of 
preservations, ice being used for coohug, and proper dryers for taking up 
the superabundant moisture. We have had ripe tomatoes kept for three 
months in such a house, and in the most perfect manner. Fruit-growers 
may arrive sufficiently near the mark, so that fruit may be kept perfectly 
during the cold months, by means of frost-proof walls, and a careful system 
of ventilation, avoiding a thorough draft. 

Since fruit is easily affected by odors, care should be taken that the air of 
any fruit house should be kept clean and sweet. To this end nothing but 
fruit should be kept in the fruit house— at least nothing that will give off un- 
pleasant odors. So particular are some in this respect that they will not 
keep apples and pears in the same room. To insure perfect cleanliness, the 
walls and floors sh(juld Ije frequently Avhitewashed with lime. We see no 
reason why the sub-earth air duct system may not be one of the best means 
for Avinter ventilation, as it certainly must be for summer ventilation. 

With care fruits may be retarded in their ripening for long periods. 
When Avanted for use they are removed to a Avarm and light place, AA'here 
they quickly mature. When extra fine specimens are to be preserved, they 
are carefully packed in some dry odorless substance, as cotton-wool, bran, 
buckwheat hulls, dry oak leaves, or pure sand. Land plaster is said to be 
an excellent means for saving apples through the Avinter intact. A thin 
layer of plaster is placed in the bottom of the barrel, then a layer of apples, 
and so alternately layer of plaster aud apples until the barrel is filled, Avhen 
the barrel is headed and kept in a cool place until spring, coming out sound 
and intact. This plan should keep russets, and other varieties liable to 
shrivel, and those wishing to keep apples as late as possible, and having no 
fruit house, may find this plan valuable. There will be no loss in the x>la8- 
ter, for it will be worth all it costs, and more, for soAA'ing on the land after 
the apples are used 

Bark liice on Apple Trees — Judicious pruning of the branches, drain- 
ing the land Avhere the trees stand, manuring the soil and keeping it free 
from grass and Aveeds, all have the effect to promote vigorous groAvth, and 
are therefore useful in preventing the depredations of bark lice. Unless a 
vigorous growth of a tree can be insured, it is of little use to apply sub- 
stances to kill the lice. The lady-bird, whose presence should always be 
welcomed on farms, is the mortal enemy of the bark louse, as it is of many 
other sorts of insects. But hurtful insects increase so much faster than use- 
ful birds do that we may neA^«r expect to see the latter exterminate the 
former. Indeed, no amount of cultivation and no number of birds ever col- 
lected in an orchard will be sufficient to clear it of the scale bark lice, if they 
are generally distributed among the trees. If but a few trees have bark Hce 
on them, and they are well covered with them, it is best to cut them up. 
This heroic treatment will prevent their spreading to other trees. The time 
to kill the insects is when they begin to hatch. They are most readily killed 
by applying some wash to the bark Avith a stiff brush or swab. The articles 
most highly recommended for killing the hce are strong lye made of wood 
ashes, a solution of caustic soda of potash, diluted soft soap, and a mixture 
of lime whitewash and kerosene oil. If the latter is employed, the propor- 



124 THE FARM. 

tions of the mixture should be one pint of kerosene to a gallon of the white- 
wash. Whatever substances are chosen, they should be applied thDroughly. 
To insure complete destruction of the insect, a second application should be 
made some days after the first. 



Top Grafting Trees.- -A practical fruit grower gires the following as 
his mode of top grafting: I have in a measure discarded the old system of 
cleft grafting, for a cheap, safer and easier way. I save the cions by cut- 
ting them in the fall or early winter, pack in sand or saAvdust and keep in a 
cool cellar. After the trees have come out in leaf, during May and June, 
cut a bud from the cion and insert under the bark well tied and waxed U) 
keep out the air and water, setting one bud in each leading limb all over the 
tree. In the course of two or three weeks these buds will have connected or 
else have died. For all that have connected saw the limits off above the bud 
and throw the growth into them. Those that have died set again in July or 
August with buds taken from the new growth of wood, and cut them off the 
next spring. I set tops in that way in twenty seedling apple trees twelve 
years old in June, 1878, piitting in on am average twelve to the tree. In 
1884, six years from setting, they have forty bushels of Stark apples, worth 
one dollar per bushel. The expense of budding was ten dollars. If the 
same trees had been changed by cleft grafting the change would have cost 
two or three times that amount. 

Hints on Marketing Pears. — Pears, whether early or late, shoiild 
never remain on the tree until they become mellow. Whenever they have 
made their growth they should be gathered. It is easy to tell the proper 
condition by observing the ease Avith which the stem parts from the tree. If, 
on taking hold of the pear and lifting it, the stem readily breaks away from 
the spur to which it is attached, the fruit has received all the nourishment it 
can get from the tree, and the sooner it is gathered the better. Pears are 
sent to market in crates and half barrels; especially fine specimens are sent 
in shallow boxes, only deep enough for a single layer of fruit, and each pear 
is wrapped in thin white paper. Extra specimens of any of the standard 
kinds will brmg enough more to pay for this extra care in packing. The 
early varieties mature quicker after gathering than the later kinds, but all 
should reach the market in a firm and hard condition. As with all other 
fruits, it will pay to carefully assort pears. Make three lots, firsts and 
seconds for market, and the third for keeping at home — for the pigs, if need 
be; there is positively no sale for poor pears. 

Ants in tlie Orcliard. — Many o^ the leading orchard proprietors iu 
northern Italy and southern Germany are cultivators of the common black 
ant, an insect they hold in high esteem as the fruit grower's best friend. 
They establish ant-hills in their orchards, and leave the police service of 
their fruit trees entirely to the colonists, which pass all their time in climb- 
ing up the stems of the fruit trees, cleansing their boughs and leaves of 
malefactors, mature as well as embryotic, and descending laden Avith spoils 
to the ground, Avhere they comfortably consume or prudently store away 
their booty. They never meddle AAith sound fruit, but only invade such 
apples, pears and plums as have already been penetrated by the canker, 
Avhich they remorselessly pui'sue to its fastness within the very heart of the 
fruit. Nowhere are apple and pear trees so free from blight and destructive 
insects as ia the iLimediate neighborhood of a large ant-hill five or six years 
old. The favorite food of acts would appear to be the larvae and pupae of 



OB. CHARD AND Y IN E YARD. 125 

those creatures -vyhiob spend the whole of their brief existence in devouring 
the tender shoots an«l juvenile leaves of fruit trees. 

Cultivating tlie Orcliard.- A successful fruit grower pursues the 
following plan: He plows his orchard one Avay, leaving strips close to the 
trees about eight feet wide, and plaiats potatoes, covering them with straw. 
In the fall, when he digs his potatoes, he piles the straw, and the next spring 
he plows the ground crosswise and plants again, using the same straw. 
After the straw has been used two years, it is turned xinder in the fall, to 
manure the ground. In this way his orchard is manured with very little 
trouble, and he cultivates his orchard at the same time. He says that he 
does not believe, from his o^vn experience, that it is good for fruit trees to 
have the plow run any closer than four feet on each side, but thinks it better 
to cultivate in this way between the rows than to seed down to grass and 
pasture. 

Hints on Gatliering Apples and Pears. — Most people are disposed 
to gather the autumn fruits too soon. A rule is generally adopted by gar- 
deners, that if the pips of the apples or pears are turning brown, the crop 
may be taken; but a decidedly dark and settled hue of the seed is a safer 
criterion. As to the objection that waiting late into the autumn causes a loss 
of the fruit by ialling, it has httle weight, because it is by this process that 
ihe. weaker and least sound fi'uit is got rid of, while the best remains. Tak- 
ing the crop too early will not only injure the good fruit by causing it to 
shrivel, but will also render frequent removals necessary in order to 
separate from the stock the rotten ones, which would, of themselves, have 
fallen from the tree if more time had been given. 

To Preserve Pear Trees From Bliglit. — A New Hampshire fruit 
grower preserves his pear trees from blight by winding a rope of straw 
around the trunks so as to completely cover them from the ground to the 
limbs, keeping it on, moderately tight, through the season. His theory is 
that the blight is caused by the rays of the hot sun coming in contact with 
the body of the tree, heating the sap and causing it to dry up and the bark 
to grow to the wood of the tree. 

Iron for Fruit Trees— The scales which fly off from iron being worked 
at forges, iron trimming, filings, or other ferruginous material, if worked 
into the soil about fruit trees, or the more minute particles spread thinly on 
the lawn, mixed with the earth of flower teds or in pots, are most valuable 
to the peach or pear, and, in fact, supply necessary ingredients to the soil. 
For colored flowers they heighten the bloom and increase the brilliancy of 
white or nearly white flowers of all the rose family. 

Secret of Raising Q,wiinces._Purchase the orange variety, and set the 
trees from six to eight feet apart in rich soil. Bandage the stem with two or 
three wrappings of old cloth as far down in the ground as possible, as the 
root starts fi-om near the surface. Let the bandana run six or eight inches 
above the ground, then pack the soil a couple of inches around the band- 
ages. This should be renewed every spring. 

Fruit Pests. — At the time when fruit trees arc blossoming, and when 
sparrows have commenced fheir annual raids upon them, a good way of 
driving away these diminutive plaguei, consists of lime-washing the trees, 
"WTaen thus whitened, the birds disappear. 



126 



THE FARM. 




IN THE VINEYABD. — FIG. 1. 



Ill the Vineyard._We present herewith a brief iUustratecl article, from 
the pen of a successful grape grower, giving some hints and suggestions ou 
the planting and culture of grape vines, which we think will be found inter- 
esting: 

'* I have been looking over my former years' work, have been reading 
back, or rather over again the views of others, and after studying all I took 
my spade and digging fork and Avent to an Isabella vine, planted some ten 

years or more since, and 
which has never shown any 
disease, but yearly ripened 
its fruit regularly and 
evenly. It was on clay 
soil. I dug carefully all 
around it a distance of four 
feet each way from the 
vine, or eight feet diam- 
eter, took out a trench mth 
the spade, then with my 
fork I commenced to shako 
out roots, which I found 
much as here represented 
(Fig. 1). 

Of course the length of 
the roots is not here showu, 
for some I broke oflf in digging; but there was no direct tap root of any size, 
and altogether the larger portion of the roots were within ten inches of the 
surface. Small roots as large as a goose quill, it is true, were apparently 
down below. Some of them pulled upon lifting the vine, others broke off, 
but there was not a large or main root so situated. It may not be that this 
is any guide showmg the general habit of roots of the vine, when grown in 
vineyards of clay soils and yearly pruned; but for the present I will so con- 
sider it, and when I plant avoid, as I have generally heretofore, setting the 
roots too deep. Most workers on the grape tell us that the roots must be 
planted deep, at least, they must have ten inches of soil over and above the 
upper root of the plant; and *k^ 
they tell us that if the plants \ 
are too small for such pur- 
pose, then we must excavate 
a basin, set the plant, and as 
it grows fill up around the 
stem. The accompanying 
figure shows this mode of j^- ^^^ vineyaki>.--fi(>. 2. 

plantmg as I understand it 

(Fig. 2). A straight line drawn across from the ends of the dotted line would 
show the level of the ground; the dotted line the excavation, with the plant 
having two eyes, and set in just deep enough to cover the lower eye or bud 
with soil. The roots ar6 shortened as here shown to about eighteen inches 
in length and spread out regularly, setting the base of the main stem on a 
little mound or rise, not a sharp cone, but a broad mound. 

The next manner of planting, highly recommended by a good cultivator, I 
have followed with good results. It is to prepare the ground where this 
plant is to stand by finely pulverizing it, then excavate a breadth or circle 
Bufificiently wide to admit of straightening out the entire roots of the vine 




OliCtiABi) AND VINEYARD. Vll 

without cutting avray a single inch; make the excavation about six inches 
deep at the outside of the circle and rising so that the center is four inches 
l^elow the level of the surrounding ground. Fig. 3 shows this method, the 
straight line being the surface of the mound on which the plant is placed 
before filling in the earth. This depth for planting I beheve a good one." 

Winter Care of Grape Vines.— AH varieties of grape vines not thor- 
oughly hardy should receive some winter protection to secure best results, 
and it is claimed by many that it pays to give protection to the hardiest 
kinds even. Some growers attribute their success with Delaware, Duchess, 
Roger's Hybrids, etc., simply to covering, while their neighbors signally fail 
with the same varieties. As the treatment in both cases is exactly alike, 
the different results can only be attributed to the protection given in one 
case and its omission in the other. The process is simple, and depends on 
the extent of the operation. After the vines have shed their leaves and ma- 
tured their wood, they should be pruned, and on the approach of cold 
weather, loosened from the trelhs, bent down on the ground, and held there 
with stakes, rails, or something similar. This is sometimes found sufficient, 
especially when snow lies till late in the spring. If not satisfied with this 
dependence, a shght covering with leaves, straw, cornstalks, limbs of ever- 
greens, will prove effectual. 
If danger is to be apprehend- 
ed from the depredations of 
mice, which in some sections 
are very troiiblesome, a slight 
covering of earth on the top 
is all that is necessary. It 
should be remembered that 

it is the young wood of the in the vineyakd7— fig. 3. 

present season's growth that 

is to be protected — this containe the buds in which are the embryo frgit 
cluster for next year's crop. Of course, similar protection would not hurt 
the old wood, but it is not always feasible to provide it. But the main ques- 
tion necessarily preceding all this, on which depends the success or entire 
failure of the w^hole operation, is the maturity and thorough ripenin|; of the 
wood. 

Keeping Grapes. — In Europe a method of preserving grapes is now 
veiy generally followed. The cluster is cut with a piece of the cane still 
attached, and the lower end of the cane is inserted in the neck of a bottle 
containing water. Grapes thus treated are kept in a perfect manner for a 
long time. European journals have figured racks and other devices for 
holding the bottles in such a manner that they may sustain the weight of the 
fruit, and also to allow the clusters to hang free, and much as they would 
upon the vine. We are not aware that this method has been tried with our 
native grapes. These, even at the holidays, when the price is the highest, 
sell for too little to make this method of keeping profitable, but for home 
use, the experiment seems to be worth trying. 

Keeping Grapes in Cellars._If grapes mature perfectly they may be 
kept for a considerable length of time if cut without bruising, and hung up 
in a dry, cool, and rather dark cellar. The stem should be covered, when 
cut, with wax, and hung with the stem up. Immature grapes will not keep 
in this way or any other. 




12H 



iTHE FARM, 




FIG. 1. — KEEPING GRAPES IN WINTER. 



liieeping Grapes in "Winter. — Perhaps among the many methocls and 

devices employed in keeping grapes in their natural state for winter use, 
there will be found none better than the simple ones we here illustrate and 

describe. The first method 
is to take new soap boxes, 
or any other box of about 
that size, and nail cleats on 
the inside of the ends or 
sides about one inch from 
the top, and between them 
bars at various distances, as 
required by the varying 
length of the bearing shoot 
cuttings. The bars are 
made by nailing a small 
strip on top of each, as 
shown in our illustration, 
Fig. 1. As late as possible 
cut off the bearing shoots 
containing the bunches, with 
pruning shears, and shorten them so they will crowd between the end of the 
box and the top part of the bar, resting on the bottom part, thus hanging the 
bunches in their natural position. By this method the boxes can be handled 
without shaking the shoots off the bars, carried to the light, each bunch ex- 
amined as winter advances, decaying ber- 
ries or bunches removed, and the best 
kept without any moldy taste, as is so 
common when they are packed solid. 

Another method of preserving grapes 
for Avinter, is in the first place to have the 
bunches as perfect as possible. Cut 
away all green, decayed or imperfect 
berries. Air them sufficiently to slightly 
dry or cure the stem, then keep the grapes 
cool, dry and in the dark. Shallow boxes, 
of about five inches in depth, are well 
adapted to keeping grapes, but the wood 
should not be of a resinous character but 
wholly odorless, that the fruit may not be 
tainted. Our illustration, Fig. 2, repre- 
sents a plan adopted by the French, 
which is to suspend the bunches from 
hoops in a warm room or dry cellar. In 
this position they may be readily exam- 
ined at any time. It is said that grapes 
will keep well treated in this manner. 

How to Prune tlxe Grape. — The 

custom has usually been to prune in 

February, but we believe it would be 

better if done earlier. The excised portions should be cut up in pieces from 

one to two feet in length, as the buds might be best adapted to planting, tied 

in bimdLe* of, say, one or two dozen, and buried a few inchei under the soil 




-KEEPING GRAPES IN 
WINTER. 



ORCHAMJJ AND VINEYARD. 



129 



in a location whence the water would drain off, or under an open shed. 
There they would keep fresh and in full life until planting in the spring. 
The vines should be cut loose from the trellis and left to sprawl over the 
ground, in which position they will stand the winter much better. 

A Cheap TreUis— Our illustration upon this page gives a good idea of 
a permanent and quite cheap grape- 
vine trelhs. The posts lest on stones 
sunk a little into the ground. The 
posts may be of any desired size of 
timber. A capping piece connects 
them along each side, and cross pieces 
join the opposite posts. Wire is used 
for the lattice work. Such a trellis 
costs about fifty cents a running foot, 
and is not at all unsightly. 

Culture of Hardy Grapes. — J. T. 

Lovett, of Little Silver, the well-known 
New Jersey fruit grower, says in re- 
gard to the culture of hardy grapes: 
Plant in rows six feet apart, and the 
vines eight feet apart in the rows. Dig 
holes twelve to fifteen inches deep, and 
of a size amply large to accommodate 
the vines. They should then be filled 
to witliin six or eight inches of the top 
with fine, rich soil, throwing in while 
doing so a few bones or some wood 
ashes, if to be had. Cut back one-year 
vines to two eyes, placing the lower 
one below the surface; two-year vines 
to three or four eyes, and putting two 
or three eyes below the surface. 
Spread out the roots (which should 
have previously had one-third their 
length cut off), place the stock of the 
vine at one side of the hole, and fill 
ynih. fine soil, pressing it firmly. When 
planted, set a stake at the stock (to 
which the vine should be* kept tied), 
which will be all the support requu-ed 
for two years. Keep old wood trimmed 
off, growing fruit on new canes. Any 
manner of pruning that will admit the 
sun to the fruit will insure a crop; and laying the vines on the ground, even 
without covering, will increase both the quality of the fruit and the size of 
the bunches, besides insuring safety from injury by frost. For mildew 
dust with flower of sulphur while the vines are wet. 

Bleeding Grape "Vines. — It is stated that an English grape grower 
stopped the profuse bleeding of a thrifty grape vine by forming a sort of 
hard cement over the cut ends by repeated dustings at short intervals with 
Portland cement, 




SMALL FRUITS. 



Cranberry Culture— The constantly increasing price of the cranberry, 

and the great numbers of marshes Avith alluvium soil free from clay or loam 
that one meets almost everywhere, prompts the question why cranberries 
are not more generally cultivated. Of all the self-supporting crops, none 
needs less care than the cranberry, if the conditions that govern its culture 
are first complied with, and none certainly shows greater financial results. 
The first essential is the marsh and its soil, with reference also to the ability 
to control the water supply. A soil having any proportion of clay should be 
avoided, and selection made of a combined decaying vegetable mass, with 
natural sund, and the less loam there is in this the better. Eastern growers 
cover their marshes with sand, but in the West, if the swamp, upon exami- 
nation, seems to have a fair amount of sand or silex, it is quite i)robable that 
success may be attained in putting out the plants without this sand mulch. 
As a rule, it is a greater guarantee of success to have a stream of water 
crossing the marsh, for then in dry Aveather the gates can be closed and the 
marsh satui'ated, and if insect pests make their appearance the vines can be 
submerged for a day, which will make the worms loosen their hold, but the 
chances may be taken on a common " dry " patch of swamp. It is supposed 
that any one who attempts the culture of cranberries will make the dams 
and embankments of the most solid and substantial character, Avith gates 
that will not only Avork, but be water-tight, else failure Avill come with the 
first freshet. Ditching should next be seen to, and rapid drainage secured. 
This is done by a broad central channel and lateral ditches, Avhich should 
not be at right angles to it, but approaching it in diagonal lines. The 
amount of Avater Avill have to be taken into consideration — the more water, 
the more ditches — a fact that will determine also the Avidth of the main out- 
let. If the swamp is of some extent, it is to be presumed that a ditch at 
least six or eight feet in AAidth will be needed. These ditches should not be 
over tAvo feet in depth, and unless there are very heavy discharges of Avater 
from the uplands, or natural Avater courses, the side ditches need not be 
nearer than one hundred feet from each other. One ditch should always 
run parallel Avith and about six feet, or even more, from the dam; the soil 
throAvn out can be utilized in building the dam. The planting requires some 
discernment. If the muck is covered with alders, reeds, and the like, a 
great amount of labor aa411 have to be performed in advance, but the experi- 
ence of a great many has been, whei'e the muck Avas only covered Avith a 
growth of wild grass, that the ditching and consequent dry soil will so hinder 
its growth that the berry vines Avill thrive and soon force it into subjection, 
and, upon the Avhole, it Avill, in the first year of the growth of the cranbei-ry, 
prove a source of profit in the way of protection from exposure and the like. 
By this method the labor of setting the Adnes Avill only be one of thrusting a 
narrow spade into the soil, pushing the handle over to one side, insert the 
plants, three or four in number, and press the soil firmly about the plants 
witb the foot, Where weeds and wild sage have a strong hold upon the 



^MALL FRUITS. 131 

awamp, the removal of the turf is the only way to aucceecl with tlie cran- 
berries. To pay $50 and $75 an acre to clear the ground, in addition to the 
expense of ditching, seems a large outlay, but Avhenjhe plants have estab- 
lished themselves and you find that the acre has produced one hundred to 
one hundred and fifty bushels of berries, worth $4: per bushel, the "light 
shines from an entirely difterent quarter." Planting these hills three feet 
apart each way gives both ample room and chance for cultivation, and in a 
couple of years the plants will occupy the entire ground, and if no chance is 
given to seed the ground with weeds, the care of the vines will be quite a 
small item for several years. 

Preparing Soil for Stra-fvberries. — Upon tliis subject E. P. Eoe writes 
as follows: In the garden, light soils can be given a much more stable and 
productive character, covering them with clay to the depth of one or two 
•inches every fall. The winter's frost and rain mix the two diverse soils to 
their mutual benefit. Carting sand on clay is rarely remunerative; the 
reverse is decidedly so, and top-dressing of clay on light land is often more 
beneficial than equal amounts of manure. 

As practically emj^loyed, I regard quick stimulating manures, like guano, 
very injurious to light soils. I bcUeve them to be the curse of the South, 
^hey are used " to make a crop," as it is termed; and they do make it for a 
few years, but to the utter impoverishment of the land. 

And yet, by the aid of these stimulating commercial fertilizers, the 
poorest and thinnest soil can be made to produce good strawberries if suf- 
ficient moisture can be maintained. Just as a physician can i-ally an 
exhausted man to a condition in Avhich he can take and be strengthened by 
food, so land, too poor and light to sprout a pea; can be stimulated into pro- 
ducing a meagre green crop of some kind, which plowed under, will enable 
the land to produce a second and heavier bixrden. This, in turn, placed in 
the soil, "will l^egin to give a suggestion of fertility. Thus poor or exhausted 
soil can be made by several years of skiflful management, to convalesce 
slowly into strength. 

Coarse, gravelly soils are usually even worse. If we must grow our 
strawberries on them give the same general treatment that I have sug- 
gested. 

On some peat soils the strawberry thrives abundantly; on others it burns 
and dwindles. With a soil, I should experiment with bone dust, ashes, et" 
until I found just what was lacking. 

No written directions can take the place of common sense judgment, and 
above all, experience. Soils vary like individual chai-acter. I have yet to 
learn of a system of rules that will teach us how to deal with every man we 
meet. It is ever wise, however, to deal justly and liberally. He that 
expects much from his land must give it much. 

I have dwelt at length upon the preparation and enrichment of the laud, 
since it is the corner stone of all subsequent success. Let me close by 
emphasizing again the principle which was made prominent at first. Though 
we give our strawberry jDlants everything else they need, our crop of fruit 
will still be good or bad in proportion as we are able to maintain abundant 
moisture during the blossoming and fruiting season. If provision can be 
made for irrigation, it may increase the yield tenfold. 

When to Plant Stra-w'toerries. — The above question is often asked, 
and its answer must depend upon circumstances. One fact about the straw- 



i32 ^ME FAhU. 

berry plant should be known, and this will enable each one to decide for 
himself. The plants that are sent out by nurserymen are those that were 
formed last year by the runners from old plants taking root in the soil of the 
bed, If these are taken up in the usual way and planted in a new bed— it 
may be after the lapse of several days— they require a whole season to get 
established and become sufficiently strong to bear a cx-op. If these plants 
are set this spring, they will bear a crop next spring; if such plants are set 
next autumn, they will require all of next season to grow in, and while they 
may i^roduce here and there a few bei'ries, they will give no real crop until 
the following year. Growei-s of fruit for market set a share of their plants in 
the fall, because then they have leisure and the ground is in excellent con- 
dition. If the plants are made to strike root in pots, these in early autumn 
may be planted in beds without any disturbance of their roots, and will give 
a fair crop next spring. Such jjlants are more expensive than others, and if 
a crop of fruit is wanted next spring, it is better to set out the plants now.' 
Making the rows two feet apart, and setting the plants one foot apart in the 
row, as a general rule is best. 

With regard to protecting strawl)erry plants, if some light material can be 
put over the plants that will not smother and rot them, and yet will be just 
enough to make shade from the winter sun and a screen from frosty winds, 
it will be doing a good turn to the strawberry plant. Manure is bad. There 
is salt in it, especially when fresh, which is destructiye to foliage; but clean 
straw, or swamp, or marsh hay that is free from weeds, answers the purpose 
very well. But it must not be put on very thick. The idea is, just enough 
to make a thin screen, and yet enough to hold the moisture long. Shade 
without damp is the idea. Such light protection is good for the plant. 

Covering Stra-ivberries. — The strawberry endures cold well, writes a 
successful small fruit grower, but not the great sudden changes of tempera- 
ture, and cold, drying winds. If the situation is such that the plants are not 
exposed to the winds, and the ^ools are large and thick with foliage, this 
foliage will be a sufficient protection; doubtful, however, should the snow be 
very deep and close packed, and lie long, or ice form on the surface of the 
ground, locking it for a long time. It is worse still if the frost extends deep 
into the gi'ound. Under such circumstances the smothering influence may 
either kill the plant or seriously injure it. The plants without covering are 
safe where the winter is mild and the soil has perfect drainage. But the safe 
thing is to cover the plants. For perfect protection I find nothing so good as 
hemlock briTsh, or straw kept in place by a hemlock bough, with the con- 
cave side under, thus preventing the tatal pressure of the snow. I put on 
the covering at the beginning of winter, and keep it on until spiing frosts are 
over. The plant ■svill then come out fresh, sti'ong and unharmed, and imme- 
diately push its growth. 

This answers for a small plot of ground. For field cultui-e, light stable 
manure with three or four parts of sawdifst, or other fine vegetable absorb- 
ent, to one of manure, succeeds well as a covering, but should be used only 
where the soil requires the fertility, as too high manuring produces foliage 
rather than fruit. 

Vegetable material worked into the soil is one of the best elements in the 
strawberry culture, as also in the culture of other beriies. It loosens clay 
and improves the character of sandy soil, seeming also to form the right 
pabulum for the fruit. I also get the best crops and the finest berries in this 
way. Two weeks ago I gave the plants a spiinkling of liquid manure 



f^MALL FJiriTS. m 

(diluted urine), and they are briglitcuing up and invigorated so as to with- 
stand the winter better, and put out strong and early in the spring. This 
attention is only a trifle, but it helps a good deal. The strawberry, like the 
grape, is very susceptible to treatment, and can be made to do much more 
than we xisually see. 

Cultivation of Strawberries.— An Illinois journal says that the pre- 
paration of the ground for strawberries, and, indeed, for all berry fruits 
raised in the garden, is exceedingly simple. Any land rich enough to bring 
forty to lifty bushels of corn per acre, under good cultivation, will do. The 
ground should be plowed deeply and thoroughly well pulverized. Mark the 
land if for field culture, the distance as for corn. If for garden culture, the 
field may be marked both ways, and one good plant placed at each intersec- 
tion, spreading the roots naturally, placing the plants so the crowns will not 
be above the surface, giving a little water to the roots if the soil be not fairly 
moist, and after the water has settled away, drawing the dry earth over all. 
For garden culture, one plant to three feet of space will be sufficient, unless 
the plants are to be raised in stools, and the runners kept cut out, when a 
plant to each two feet will be about right, if you want extra large berries. 
The cultivation is simple. The spaces between the rows, about two feet 
wide, may be kept clean with the cultivator. In the rows the weeds may be 
kept, early in the season, clean with the cultivator; later, when the runners 
have encroached on the rows, the weeds must be pulled out if necessary, 
but on faii-ly clean soil, the cultivation will not be difficult. Beds of the pre- 
vious year, and which should be in full fruit this season, may be kept clean 
between the rows with the cultivator. . The weeds will not trouble much 
until the crop is gathered. 

About Raspberries. — Not one-half the people grow raspberries that 
should. To say nothing of the excellence of this fruit freshly taken from the 
vines, with cream or without, it is really the best there is for canning, and 
either raw or canned it finds a ready market. It is easily cultivated, pro- 
duces large crops, and has few insect enemies. 

In starting a bed the best time is in the fall, but if neglected then, plant 
early in the spring, pressing the earth firmly about the roots and cutting the 
canes off six inches high. Count all suckers as weeds except three to five to. 
the hill. The hills may be four feet apart each way, so they can be worked 
with the plow and cultivator. No stakes are needed, for the canes are kept 
stocky by being pinched otf hen about a yard high. 

As to varieties, of course there is none better for this locality than the 
Brandywine. It is true and tried. It carries well to market, and its bright 
red color makes it the most salable berry in the catalogue. For home use 
alone it is no better than the Herstine, but this is not solid, and the plants 
need covering in winter north of this latitude. The Herstine is a splendid 
berry — good enough for anybody. The Philadelphia is a valuable old stand- 
ard, but is soft and too dark in color. The Keliance is nearly of the same 
color, but we believe every way better than the Plnladelphia. 

The Cuthbert is immensely praised just now, and so many unite in com- 
mending it, that it certainly must have merit. It is perfectly hardy, and 
thrives North and South. It is said to be very productive, the berries are 
immense, and the bearing time holds on a long time. The Queen of the 
Market is quite similar to the Cuthbert, in fact so nearly alike are the two 
berries, that many consider tliem identical. 



lU THE FAHM. 

The above are all red varieties. Of the black caps the Mammoth Cluster 
is the old popular variety, but the new Gregg is said to be greatly superior 
to it. 

Tlxe Blaclcbei-ry and 'Wliortleberi-y — Those who find it difficult to 
get good ripe blackbei-ries and whortleberries maybe glad to know that they 
can be grown in their own gardens as well as the strawberry, and that with 
the right treatment they will surpass in tiavor and size any which may have 
grown in their grandfather's day. The low-bush or running blackberry 
grows best on a warm soil of either sandy loam or gravel, and when properly 
grown and well ripened is much better than any of the high bush varieties. 
The plants should be set in May, in rows three feet apart and two feet in the 
rows. Care should be taken to select good strong young roots, and those 
which bear large sweet berries, avoiding those Avhich bear the sour hemes 
that ripen later in the season; it is best to mark the plants when the fruit is 
ripening, or secure the assistance of one who knows where the right variety 
grows. For garden culture the ground should be well hoed the first part of 
the season, and mulched Avith leaves or hay about the first of August. If 
properly cared for the first year, but little needs to be done the next spring; 
the crop will be large if the vines are well supplied with water during the 
ripening season; during this time they require quite as much water as the 
strawberry. The berries should not be picked until fully ripe, and to be in 
the best condition for sauce should be picked but a short time before eaten; 
when thus picked, they surpass in richness and flavor the strawberry; as it 
cannot be transported when fully ripe, any better, if so well as the strawberry, 
its good qualities are known only to those who cultivate it in their own gar- 
den, and understand the right time to pick it. But few dishes can be placed 
upon the table so acceptable as a dish of good, well-ripened blackberries of 
the variety which grow on the low running vines. To keep the garden clean, 
new ^dnes should be set every year, and the old ones removed as soon as the 
berries are picked. The whortleberry, both the high and the low-bush, re 
quires a different treatment from the blackberry; it will grow on almost any 
soil. Bushes should be selected that are known to produce large-sized and 
good flavored berries; they should be set near enough together to shade the 
ground; a large portion of the top should be cut oflt"; the ground be mulched 
with a heavy coat of leaves, and should not be disturbed by cultivation; but 
should be kept well mulched until the bushes are thick enough and large 
enough to shade the ground, and thus they protect themselves; when once 
established they require biit httle care. When the bushes seem to have too 
much old wood to bear well, they should be cut down to the gro\ind in the 
autumn; the next year they will make a vigorous growth, and the year after 
bear some very large berries, but not a full crop until the following year. 

Croosetoeri'ies and Cui-raiits. — There is no reason why both these very 
useful fruits should not be found abundantly in every garden. They are no 
trouble to raise. They grow readily from cuttings. Take the wood of last 
year, from six to ten inches in length; prepare the bed or place where they 
are to stand permanently; force them into the ground not less than four 
inches, press the dirt firmly around them, mulch them, and let them alone. 
If a brush is desired let the buds on the cuttings remain; but if a tree or 
single stem be preferred, remove all the buds that Avould go beneath the 
surface. Let them stand about three feet in the row; and if there is more 
than one row, let the rows be four feet apart. 



SMALL FRUITS. 135 

In the spring the ucad wood of both the gooseberries and currants should 
be cut out, and the new growth should be thinned where there is too much, 
as it will interfere with the product. The best red currant is the Dutch, and 
the best gooseberries are Downing's Prolific and Houghton's Seedling. 

Advantages of Mitlcliing — The Germantown Telegraph says: " Al- 
though we have suggested many times in the past the great advantage of 
mulching raspberry and blackberry beds, it cannot be suggested too often. 
But this mulching should not be done or rather renewed in the season until 
the heat of the sun or drought requires it; neither should it be done until 
after the suckers or new plants show themselves and are of sufficient height 
not to be injured by the application of the mulch, which, if too thick and 
appUed too soon, will in a great measure prevent the sprouting, and Avhei-e 
it does not will cause the sprouts to be weak and spindling. Currant bushes 
also delight in a moist, cool soil, and mulching provides this if applied in 
sufficient quantity. Anything in the way of weeds, small branches of trees, 
grass from lawn cuttings, etc., Avill answer. The mulching of tomato plants, 
egg plants, etc., will prove very beneficial. We know that some persons 
have not our faith in mulching, and prefer beds of plants, young trees, etc., 
to have the soil stirred up about them frequently. This, we are aware, is 
excellent, but it does not hinder the mulching also. Let the old mulch be 
removed, the soil well loosened, and then apply fresh mulch." 

FaU Setting of Small Friiits._It is urged that those contemplating 
setting small fruits should give one trial at least to fall setting. All that is 
necessary is to either back up over the roots with earth, or throw a forkful 
of litter over each plant, before the ground freezes up, and in the spring haul 
this away. First, because they get settled in their place, and getting the 
benefit of early spring rains, start early, and make a full growth next season, 
while if set next spring, it cannot be done properly until the ground is set- 
tled and the heavy spring rains have ceased. Second, all fruit growers know 
how pressed they are for time in the spring. Third, raspberries and black- 
berries have very tender germs that start very early in the spring, and these 
are likely to be broken off if set then, while if set in the fall, they have not 
started enough to damage them in transplanting. And fourth, but not least, 
a much larger proportion of them live when set in the fall — a fact abundant 
in itself to show the superior merits of fall planting, especially of blackber- 
ries, raspberries, currants, grapes, and such sorts. 

Red Raspbei-ry. — There is no fruit that is in greater demand at such 
paying prices, and with which the market is so poorly supplied, as the red 
raspberry, and one reason why the market is so poorly supplied is because 
there has been sent over the country so many tender sorts that have so 
easily winter killed, but now with such hardy and productive sorts as the 
Brandywine, Philadelphia, Turner, Highland Hardy, Thwack and Cuthbert, 
and that succeed so well wherever tried, there is no excuse for not having 
this delicious fruit in abundance. Another reason why they pay so poorly is 
that they have been allowed to grow belter skelter all over the ground. If 
you Avould have fruit in abundance, and of larger size, the suckers must be 
kept down same as weeds, and the same cultivation that will keep the ground 
in proper plight and keep weeds down will keep suckers down. 

Easy Method of Cultivating Small Fruits. — A Avriter in the New 
York Ttnhune sap: "It is a source of confitant regret with farmej-s that 



136 THE FARM. x 

small fruits require so much care and attention, and that, too, in the season 
when they are hardest at work at something else. Field work must be done 
at all events, and the ' berry patch ' stniggles on single handed with the 
weeds and grass, till it submits to the inevitable sward. Some years ago 
coming into possession of a patch of black cap raspberries that had received 
the iisual shiftless culture, I treated them in the following way: After cai-e- 
fully plowing and hoeing them, I covered the groimd "svith a heavy layer of 
very strawy manure, and the work was done, not only for that year but for 
the two years following, only renewing the mulch each spring. Only a 
few struggling Canada thistles will ever grow through such mulch; the soil 
is always rich and moist, and the berries can ask no better treatment. Since 
that time I have tried the same plan without removing the sod, and find the 
result is quite as satisfactory. Farmers, try it, and you will not need to 
complain that berries cost more than they are worth. 

Wiiitei- Protection of Stra-wberry Vines. — A good strawberry pro- 
tector is a cheap baked-clay saucer, twelve to thirteen inches in diameter, 
Avith a hole in the center. The advantages claimed by its use are: a much 
larger crop; much finer berries; cleaner, and free fi'om sand and dii-t; 
mulching the ground; the retention of the rains to the roots of the vines; 
lulling the weeds; early ripening; easier picking. They are turned over as a 
■winter protection to the vines. Persons who have used it pronounce it the 
most important invention ever made in connection with strawberry raising. 

Setting a, Strawberry Bed. — The old plan of spading under a portion 
of the old strawberry bed, so as to leave the plants in i-ows, will not pay. 
Better reset clean land with vigorous plants, arranging to grow a crop of 
potatoes every third year to clean the land and mellow it. The picking of 
berries on heavy clay lands causes it to become so packed as to require cul- 
tivating at least one season in every four with some hoed crop. S+rawberry 
plants may be set in May or in August; in fact, at almost any time during the 
spiing, summer or fall season. 

Easy Metliod. of Disposing of the Currant Worui. — A successful 
small fruit grower circumvents the ravaging currant worm by allowing no 
sprouts to grow. He allows but three main stems to a bush, and rubs oft" 
all root sprouts when about six inches long. The worms begin with the new 
growth first; hence, he says, no sprouts, no worms. The fruit also is far 
finer on plants thus treated, the common red Dutch being nearly aa large as 
the Cherry currant, and a better bearer. 

An Easy Metliocl of Irrigation. — An old fruit can may be pierced 
with one or more pin holes, and then sunk in the earth near the roots of the 
strawberry or tomato, or other plants, the pin holes to be made of such size 
that when the can is filled with water the fluid can only escape into the 
gi'ound very slowly. Practical trials of this method of irrigation leave no 
doubt of its success. Plants thus watered yield bounteous returns through- 
out the longest droughts. 

Trellises for Blackberries and Raspbeii-ies — The fruit canes of the 
blackberries and raspberries should be tied up to stakes or trellisefe. 
The young growing canes form the fruiting ones for next year; cut away ali 
except three to five to each stool, and when large enough tie them up; thev 
should be pinched off at four feet for raspberries and six feet for blackberries. 



LIVE STOCK. 



How to Judge a Horse. — 1. Never take the seller's word. If dis- 
posed to be fair, he may have been the dupe of another, and will deceive 
you through representations which cannot be relied upon. 

2. Never trust a horse's mouth as a sure index of his age. 

3. Never buy a horse while in motion; watch him while he stands at rest 
and -you will discover his weak points. If sound, he will stand firmly and 
squarely on hia limbs without moving any of them, feet planted flat upon the 
ground, with legs plump and naturally poised. If one foot is thrown for- 
ward with the toe pointing to the ground and the heel raised, or if the foot is 
lifted from the ground and the weight taken from it, disease of the navicular 
bone may be suspected, or at least tenderness, which is a precursor of dis- 
ease. If the foot is thrown out, the toe raised, and the heel brought down, 
the horse has suffered from lamnitis, founder, or the back sinews have 
sprained, and he is of little future value. .When the feet are all drawn to- 
gether beneath the horse, if there has been no disease, there is a misplace- 
ment of the limb at least, and weak disposition of the muscles. If the horse 
stands with his feet spread apart, or straddles with his hind legs, there is 
weakness of the loins, and the kidneys are disordered. When the knees are 
bent, and totter and tremble, the beast has been ruined by heavy pulling, 
and will never be right again, whatever rest and treatment he may have. 
Contracted or ill-formed hoofs speak for themselves. 

4. Never buy a horse with a bluish or milky coat in his eyes. They in- 
dicate a constitutional tendency to ophthalmia, moon-blindness, etc. 

5. Never have anything to do with a horse who keeps his ears thrown 
backward. This is an invariable indication of bad temper. 

6. If the horse's hind legs are scarred, the fact denotes that he is a kicker. 

7. If the knees are blemished, the horse is apt to stumble. 

8. When the skin is rough and harsh, and does not move easily and 
Bmoothly to the touch, the horse is a heavy eater, and digestion is bad. 

9. Avoid a horse whose respiratory organs are at all impaired. If the ear 
is placed to the heart and a wheezing sound is heard, it is an indication of 
trouble. 

Feed foi- tlie Horse. — One of the most sensible articles on the treatment 
of a horse is that which is given from a physiological standpoint by Colvin. 

It is the opinion of this auf-hority that the horse's stomach has a compacity 
of only about 16 quarts, while that of the ox has 250. In the intestines this 
proportion is reversed, the horse having a capacity of 190 quarts against 100 
of the ox. The ox, and most other animals, have a gall bladder for the re- 
tention of a part of the bile secreted during digestion; the horse has none, 
and the bile flows directly into the intestines as fast as secreted. This con- 
struction of the digestive apparatus indicates that the horse was formed to 
eat slowly and digest continually bulky and innutritioue food. When fed on 
hay it passes very rapidly through the stomach into the intestines. The 



138 THE FARM. 

horse can eat but about five pounds of hay in an hour, which is charged, 
during mastication, with four times its weight of sahva. Now, the stomach, 
to digest well, will contain but about ten quarts, and when the animal eats 
one-third of his daily ration, or seven pounds, in one and one-half hours, he 
has swallowed at least two stomachfuls of hay and saliva, one of these hav- 
ing passed to the intestines. Observation has shown that the food is passed 
to the intestines by the stomach in the order in which it is received. If we 
feed a horse six quarts of oats it will just fill his stomach, and if, as soon as 
he finishes this, we feed him the above ration of seven pounds of hay, he will 
eat sufficient in three-quarters of an hour to have forced the oats entirely out 
of his stomach into the intestines. As it is the oflice of tlae stomach. to digest 
the nitrogenous parts of the feed, and as a stomachful of oats contains four 
or five times as mxich of these as the same amount of hay, it is certain that 
either the stomach must secrete the gastric juice five times as fast, which is 
hardly possible, or it must retain this food five times as long. By feeding 
the oats first, it can only be retained long enough for the proper digestion of 
hay, consequently it seems logical, ^vJlen feeding a concentrated food like 
oats, with a bulky one like hay, to feed the latter first, giving the grain the 
whole time between the repasts to be digested. 

Feeding Horses. — Another authority writes as follows: The horse has 
the smallest stomach, in proportion to his size, of any animal. This space is 
completely filled by four quarts of oats and the saliva that goes into the 
stomach with it. Horses are generallj'^ ovei'fed and not fed often enough. 
For a horse with moderate work six or eight quarts of bruised oats and ten 
pounds of fine hay are sufficient. This should be fed in three meals, and is 
better if fed in four. A horse's digestion is very rapid, and therefore he gets 
hungry sooner than a man. When he is hungry he is inefiective, and wears 
out very rapidly. Water fills the stomach, lowers the temperature, and di- 
lutes the gastric juice; therefore a horse should not drink immediately be- 
fore eating. Neither should he be watered immediately after eating, because 
he will drink too much and force some of the contents of the stomach into 
the large intestine, which will cause scouring. Scouring is also caused by 
too rapid eating, which can be prevented by putting half a dozen pebbles 
half the size of the fist into the manger with the oats. Give only a moderate 
drink of water to a horse. A large di'ink of water before being driven will 
have a very quieting effect on a nervous horse. A race horse always runs 
on an empty stomach. Digestion progresses moderately during exercise, if 
the exercise is not so violent as to exhaust the power of the horse. I con- 
sider bruised oats worth twenty per cent, more than whole. They are more 
perfectly digested. I prefer oats to any other grain for horses. Cracked 
corn is good imder some circumstances, but I would not use meal or shorts. 
The disease called big head is caused by feeding corn. When a horse comes 
in hot I Avould give a moderate feed immediately. If the horse is too tired 
to eat I would take the feed away. A heated horse is a reason against water- 
ing and for feeding, for the system is just then in a condition to begin diges- 
tion. A horse will not founder if fed immediately when hot. I prefer dry 
feed, unless the horse has some disease of the throat and lungs. I do not 
consider it worth while to cut hay. I always feed hay fi'om the floor, then 
the horses do not get particles in their eyes. 

Raising a Colt.^ A colt is regarded as an incumbrance because he is 
ueelesB until he arrives at a suitable age for work, but it really costs very 



LIVE STOCK. 139 

little, compared with his value, to raise a colt. . When the period arrives at 
which the colt can do service, the balance sheet will show in its favor, for 
young horses always command good prices if they are sound and well 
broken. One of the difficulties in the way is the incumbrance placed on the 
dam, which interferes with her iisefuluess on the farm, especially if the colt 
is foaled during the early part of the spring. Some farmers have their colts 
foaled in the fall, but this is open to two objections. In the first place, spring 
is the natural time, for then the grass is beginning to grow, and nature seems 
to have provided that most animals should bring forth their young in a sea- 
son beyond the reach of severe cold, and with sufficient time to grow and be 
prepared for the following winter. 

Again, when a colt is foaled in the fall he must i)as8 through a period of 
several months' confinement in the stable, without exercise, or else be more 
or less chilled with cold fi-om time to time. Should this happen, the effect 
of any bad treatment will be afterward manifested, and no amount of atten- 
tion can again elevate the colt to that degree of hardiness and soundness of 
body that naturally belongs to a spring colt. Besides, a colt foaled in the 
spring will outgrow one foaled in the fall. An objection to spring colts may 
be partially overcome by plowing in )A\e fall, or keeping the brood mares for 
very light work, with the colts at liberty to accompany them always. A colt 
needs but very little feeding if the pastiwe is good and there is water run- 
ning through it. He needs then only a small feed of oats at night— no corn 
—and if he is given hay it is not necessary to give him a full ration. What 
he will consume from the barn will not be one-third his value when he is 
three years old, and if he is well bred the gain is greater. 

When a farmer raises his horses he knows their disposition, constitution 
and capacity. It is the proper way to get good, sound, serviceable horses 
on the farm. It should not be overlooked that a colt must be tenderly 
treated from birth, and must be fondled and handled as much as possible. 
He should never hear a harsh word, but should be taught to have confidence 
in everybody he sees or knows. This is an easy matter if his training begins 
from the time he is a day old. He can be thus gradually broken without 
difficulty, and mil never be troublesome. No such thing as a whip should 
be allowed in a stable that contains a colt. Colts should not be worked until 
three years old, and then lightly at first, as they do not fully mature until 
they are six years old, and mth some breeds of horses even later. Mares 
with foals at theu' sider should be fed on the most nourishing food. 

To Bit a Colt — The true way to bit a colt is not to bit him at all; that 
is, let him bit himself. When my colts are one year old, I begin to teach 
them to hold the bit in their mouth. The bit is of pine, some half-inch in 
diameter, and five inches in length. This piece of soft pine is held in the 
mouth by a cord tied to either end, and fastened on the head, back of the 
ears. The colt loves to have the bit in his mouth, because it enables him to 
bring forward the saliva process. He will bit, and work it over in his mouth, 
and enjoys it hugely. He will welcome it, and will actually reach out and 
open his mouth for it, as a trained horse will for a bit. After a few days, you 
can tie strings making miniature reins to this bit, and teach the colt the 
proper use of it. When this is done, he is ready for the x-egular steel bit. 
Put your bridle on with a leather bit, large and pliant; throw your check- 
line, if your bridle has one attached, into the pigsty; get into your wagon 
and drive off. This is all the " bitting" a colt needs. Treated in this way, 
he will have a lively, yielding, sensitive mouth. He will take the bit bravely 



140 



THE FARM. 



when working up to his speed, but yield readily to the driver's will. A 
horse, bitted in this sensible way, can be driven a forty-clip with the lines 

held in one hand, or be lifted 
over a five-barred gate with 
the strength of a single wrist. 
If you do not believe it, try 
it and see. 

A Convenient Horse- 
slioe. — Among the numei-ous 
horseshoes lately devised in 
this and other countries, that 
invention in England, by Mr. 
Joseph Offord, seems worthy 
of special notice. Its object 
is to fit the hoof with a mov- 
able but firm covering, which 
can be readily adjusted to 
fit every kind of work and 
road, so that, like its master, 
the horse may own several 
sets of shoes for different 
occasions. The device con- 
sists in having one or more 
perfectly wedge-shaped holes 
in the side and close to the 
edge of each shoe (Fig. 1), in 
which triangular cogs, or 
wedges, are inserted. These are fastened by the fangs being brought, with- 
out touching the hoof, to tke outaide of the shoe, over which they are 
clenched with a small liammer. The 
cogs do not penetrate the hoof, and 
there is no risk of hurting the horse. 
The holes being wedge-shaped, can- 
not fill up with stones or dirt, and 
the fangs being malleable, the wedges 
are easily removed or inserted at 
pleasure. It is necessary, however, 
to get the holes punched in the shoes 
before the horse is shod, and for the 
coachman to be provided with a sup- 
ply of these patent cogs to insure 
safety on any road in frost or on 
wood. 

As many are accustomed to use a- 
cog which screws into the shoe, Mr. 
Offord has prepared a steel wedge- 
shaped one (Fig. 2) for this purpose. 
The screw cogs are, of course, more 
expensive. In using them the shoe 
has to be di-illed and tapped with 
one or more holes before the horse is shod. The cogs are inserted into these 
holes when needed, or removed at pleasure by means of a wrench provided 




ilG. 1. 




HOBSESHOE. — FIG. 2. 



LIVE STOCK. 



141 



for this purpose. We give two illustrations, reproduced from the Agricul- 
tural Gazette, showing both these methods, with the punch, wrench, and 
cogs, both of which have stood the test of many ytiars' experience, and have 
given great satisfaction. 

To Break Horses H'oiii Pulling at tlie Halter— Two methods of 
breaking a horse of this habit are here illustrated, as follows: 




TO BREAK HORSES FROM PULLING AT THE HALTER.— Fia. 1. 



Fig. 1.— Get a strong half-inch cord twenty -two feet in length; put the 
center under the tail like a crupper; twist them a few times as you bring 
them forward over the back; pass for- 
ward on each side of the body, the 
pass them forward through the halter 
below the jaw. Tie firmly to a tree, 
post, or stall, and excite the animal by 
any means that will cause him to pull, 
until the habit is overcome. You may 
even whip across the nose keenly until 
there is perfect submission, which wdll 
not require long. Hitch in this way 
for a few days, or so long as there is 
is any predisposition to pull on the 
halter. 

Fig. 2. — This contrivance consists 
of an ordinary ring halter, with the 
two side rings connected by a strong, 
flexible cord. Whenever the horse 
pulls, the inner part of the cord is 
drawn forcibly against his jaw, and 
the effect is a severer punishment than 
he is willing to endure. 

"Warts on Horses. — A correspon- 
dent of an English agricultural journal writes: " Inquiries are made for a 
cure for warts on horses, mules, and cattle. Many remedies are prescribed 




BREAK A 

AT A HALTER. 



FROM PULLING 
-FIG. 2. 



142 THE FA EM. 

—many barbarous and cruel to the animal. I will give you a remedy often 
tried, and never known to fail. Anoint the wart three' times with clean, 
fresh hog's lard, about two daj^s between times. I have had warts on my 
horses— bleeding warts, of large size, rattling warts and seed warts, to the 
number of more than one hundred on one horse's head. I have never been 
able to find the warts for the third application of the lard. All disappear 
after the second application. I have sent this prescription to several agri- 
cultural papers, hoping it would be of some use to farmers. But they all 
seem slow to believe, perhaps, because the remedy is at hand and costs no- 
thing. I own I was slow to believe myself; but, having a fine young mare 
with large bleeding warts, that covered parts of the biidle and girths with 
blood whenever used, I thought there would be no hami in trying lard on 
them. ^Vhen the mare was got up for the third application, there were no 
warts, and the scars are there now, after more than fifteen years, with very 
little change. I may say that for cuts, bruises, galls, etc., the application of 
fresh lard— either for man or beast— is worth more than any patent liniment 
in use. It will remove pain instantly, and does not irritate raw flesh, as all 
liniments do. 

Stumbling Hoi-ses—The Pittsburg Stockmait says: " Some good horses 
are addicted to stumbling wliile walking or moving in a slow trot. A well- 
versed veterinarian states that there are two causes that would tend to pro- 
duce this faulty action; one a general weakness in the muscular system, 
such as would be noticed in a tired horse; the other a weakness of the ex- 
terior muscles of the leg, brought about by carrying too much weight on the 
toe. To effect a cure, he adds, lighten the weight of each front shoe about 
four ounces; have the toe of the shoe made of steel instead of iron, it will 
wear longei-, have it rounded oft' about the same as it would be when one- 
third worn out, in order to prevent tripping, allow one week's rest; have the 
legs showered for a few minutes at a time with cold water through a h®se, 
in order to create a spray; then rub diy briskly, from the chest doAvn to the 
foot. Give walking exercise daily this week, for about an hour, twice a day. 
Wken you commence driving again omit the slow jog — either walk or send 
him along at a sharp trot for a mile or two, then walk away, but do not 
speed for at least several weeks. By this means the habit of stumbling 
from either of the above causes will l)e pretty well overcome. 

Cur© for Balky Hoi-se. — Hermann Koon, my German neighboi', writes 
a correspondent of the Prairie Farmer, is as patient a man as belongs to 
that patient race. Coming along the road a month or so ago, I saw Hei-- 
mann lying in a fence corner, under the shade of an elm, quietly smoking 
his pipe. A quarter of a mile or so beyond I saw Hermann's horse and 
buggy by the roadside, the horse evidently tied to a post. This was a queer 
condition of affairs, for my neighbor is one of the most industrious men I 
know. My curiosity was aroused, and I stoi)ped for an explanation. In 
broken English he told me his horse, a recent purchase, had proved balky, 
had stopped near where he now stood and no amount of coaxing could in- 
duce him to go on. Hermann did not curse the animal, he did not lash it 
Avith his whip, beat it with a club, build a fire under its belly, nor resort to 
any other of the brutal means some men use in such cases. He quietly got 
out of the buggy, tied the horse to the post, and walked off. Hermann had 
been taking it easy under the tree for three long hours. He thought the horse 
would be glad to go now if requested to do so. It had once before stopped 



LIVE STOCK. 



143 



with him, and after a paMent waiting alone, for an hour, it went on all right. 
He expected about four hours, this time, would effect a permanent cure of 
the bad habit. I 'went on about my business, leaving the stolid German to 
his pipe and his thoughts. To-day I met him again. He said the horse was 
eager to start when ho went back to the buggy, and though he has used it 
every day since, no disposition to balk has been manifested. He beUeves 
there will be no repetition of the offense. Most men think they cannot afford 
to waste time in this way, perhaps, but if the horse is cured he is a valuable 
one, whereas, if it had become a chronic balker, through cruel management, 
it would be worthless. Hermann thought he could not make money faster 
than by saving the reputation of his horse. It is a new system, but Hermann 
says it will work well every time, if the horse is not naturally vicious. It 
looks reasonable to me, and if my nag ever tries the stop game with me, and 
I can command patience sufficient, I will try his plan. 

Kicking Horses.— We present herewith a method that will be found 
available in all cases of kicking by horses. The beast should have a good 
pair of bits in his mouth, to 
which should be attached a 
strap or rope sufficiently long 
to reach back between and 
behind the fore legs about 
eight inches, and should pass 
through the girt or surcingle. 
A loop should be made in 
this, the back end of the rope 
or strap, about two inches or 
more in length. Now take a 
rope about seven or eight feet 
long. (The length of the rope 
will depend upon the size of 
the horse; the ropo should be 
long enough to allow of a 
free use of the horse's hind 
legs in traveling.) Pass one 
end of the rope round the leg, upon the inside, so the fastening shall come 
iipon the oiitside, to prevent interfeilng, and bring it round upon the outside 
of the leg, and pass the end over and around the middle of the rope and wind 
it round the rope upon the outside of the leg, as illustrated. Draw the noose 
up round the pastern— i. e., between the fetlock and hoof— and pass the 
unfastened end of the rope through the loop in the rope or strap Avhich passes 
through the surcingle, and fasten the end round the other leg, as was done 
the first time in fastening. This mode of fastening is simple, is easily done 
and undone, and will not work off, provided the noose is drawn up tightly 
around the pastern. If you have a horse that is addicted to the unpleasant hab- 
it of kicking, try this experiment, and you will find that it works admirably. 

Training Vicious Horses — A new and very simple method of training 
vicious horses was exhibited in West Philadelphia, and the manner in whieh 
some of the wildest horses were subdued was astonishing. The first trial 
,was that of a kicking or " bucking" mare, which her owner said had allowed 
no rider on her back for a period of at least five years. She became tame in 
about as many minutes, and allowed herself to be ridden about without a 




HOW TO PREVENT HOESES FEGM KICKING. 



144 



THE FARM. 



sign of her former wildness. The means by which the result was accom- 
plished was a piece of light rope which was passed around the front jaw of 
the mare just above the upper teeth, crossed in her mouth, and thence 
secured back of her neck. It was claimed that no horse Avill kick or jump 
when thus secured, and that a horse, after receiving the treatment a few 
minutes, will abandon his vicious ways forever. A very simple method was 
also shown by which a kicking horse could be shod. It consisted in connect- 
ing the animal's head and tail by means of a rope fastened to the tail and 
then to the bit, and then drawn tightly enough to incline the animal's head 
to one side. This, it is claimed, makes it absolutely impossible for the horse 
to kick on the side of the rope. At the same exhibition a horse which for 
many years had to be bound on the ground to be shod suffered the black- 
smith ' to operate on him without attempting to kick while secured in the 
manner described. 

Cialls and Sores on Horses. — If the owner of the horses, the farmer 




->&*. 



ONE CAUSE OF HIDE-BOUND. 



himself, could always be among his work animals, they would receive more 
attention and better treatment; but as he has so much to think about and 
look after, he cannot give this department his careful supervision, and many 
errors creep into the management which could not otherwise be found there. 
There are some horses which chafe more readily than others, Avhile some do 
not have the collarn and harness fit them, which will invariably cause galls 
or sores; and even when the harness does fit properly, the warm weather, or 
giving the horse a hard, warm day's work, may cause shoulder or saddle 
galls to appear, which will soon become larger and bad sores, if not 
promptly attended to. Bathing the shoulders, with spring or well water 
hardens them, and decreases the tendency toward galling. When galls ap- 
pear, wash the affected parts with good white castile soap (only use the best 
eastile and none other), and warm water to cleanse them. After the parts 



LTVJ^ STOCK. 145 

have been dried with a soft cloth or rag or sponge, anoint the parts with a 
mixture of pure glycerine in which a little carbolic acid lias been mixed. Do 
this at night after work. In the morn cleanse well again, as above, and pnt 
on some pulverized alum if you work the horse regularly. Continue this 
course until the sores are pex-fectly healed up. 

Working Mares in Foal. — It is quite common to see or heiir inquiries 
as to how near the time of foaling, a mare may be worked without injury to 
her or the colt, on the supposition that it is necessary for her to go idle for a 
month or two before. 

This is not the case; and in the hands of a careful man she may be kept 
at such work as plowing, harrowing, or cultivating without the least danger, 
until she is ready to foal. Of course, fast driving or working to a heavy 
wagon tongue, on rough or muddy roads, or where heavy backing is to be 
done, should not be allowed. The writer has always worked mares moder- 
ately on the farm, when necessary, until it was evident they were likely to 
foal within a few hours, and has known of their foaling in harness, en route 
from the plow to the barn, but never with any bad results. While we think 
it more humane to let a mare have a few days' liberty before this trying 
event, there seems to be little necessity for losing the work of a strong mare 
for any great length of time before foaling, and we would prefer to allow the 
extra holidays afterward. Ordinarily, she will do first-rate work with a ten 
days' vacation, provided that she is not put immediately to work that is too 
severe, and fed partly with something else than corn. 

Kicking in the Stall. — The habit of kicking in the stable arises from 
idleness. Regular day work is the best remedy, but when that is not suffi- 
cient, a branch or two of some prickly shrub, nailed to the posts, will often 
stop the habit, care being taken to arrange it so as not to prevent the animal 
from lymg doAvn and obtaining needed rest. Mares are supposed to be 
much more subject to this vice than geldings or stallions; but so far as our 
personal experience goes, there is little difference. A broad leather strap, 
to which is tied a small wooden log, are commonly applied to one or both 
legs, but they are not always sufficient. A heavier weight than two pounds 
should not be used, for if a horse is frightened by it, he may kick worse and 
do himself injury. When, however, he is well used to a wooden log, and 
has got over his first alarm, a heavier one may be put on if required. The 
strap, which should be broad, is buckled around the leg above the fetlock, 
and the weight suspended from it, w^hicli should not reach farther down than 
an inch and a half above the coronet, as the coronet would inflame to a mis- 
chievous extent if bruised. Sometimes a weight is required for each leg, if 
the animal kicks at both stall posts. Occasionally, Avhen all other remedies 
fail, the practice will cease when the animal be turned loose in a roomy box 
stall. 

Reining Horses. —The habit of reining in horses very tightly finds less 
favor with many persons than it did. It is not easy to see in what way the 
habit originated. If a man has a load of anything to pull, he wishes to get 
his head as far forward as possible to pull with ease. But the horse is de- 
nied this. His head is reined back tightly, thereby making it much harder 
for him to pull the load. To our view, a horse looks better, and we know 
he feels better, Avhen pursuing a natural, leisurely, swinging gait. It is as 
necessaiy for his head to oscillate in response to the motions of his body, as 
it is for a man's hands to do the same thing. A horse allowed his 



146 ■ TIIL FARM. 

head will work easier and last longer than one on which a check is used. 
Blinds are another popular absurdity in the use of horses. They collect 
dust, pound the eye, and are in every way a nuisance. A horse that cannot 
be driven with safety without them should be sold to a railroad grader. No 
colt should be broken to them. Animals fear noises they cannot see the 
ca*se of much more than those they can. We would dispense with tight 
reining and with blinds. 

Colic in Horses—This disease is caused by indigestion, over-feeding, 
or by giving cold water in large quantities, or by eating sour grain. If colic 
occurs from eating sour grain, one of the best remedies is a few lumps of 
charcoal. Pulverize it fine and pour on it about a quart of boiling Avater. 
When cool, strain off and give. If the above does not give rehef, stimulants 
should be given, with a view to arouse the stomach and get relief from the 
fermented food which it contains. Purges are of no sort of use for the pur- 
pose of reheving an overloaded stomach, and therefore if inflammation is 
present, their use is positively injurious. The use of saleratus and turpen- 
tine, which is so popular an agent with horsemen, are not always the proper 
remedies. To make use of the former, being an anti-acid it is supposed to 
combine with the free acid in the digestive organs, and thus neutralize it, 
but if its use is persisted in, it will injure the mucous membrane of the 
stomach. Turpentine is a powerful irx-itant, and it should never be made 
use of except by those who understand its action, and neutralize it by mix- 
ing it with linseed oil. The following has been used with good results, and 
can be recommended as safe and efiicacious: Sulphuric ether, 1 1-2 ounces; 
oil of pepperment, 2 ounces; water, 16 ounces. Mix and shake well before 
giving. If not reheved, give again in half an hour, and an injection com- 
posed of soap suds to be thrown into the rectum. 

Dr. N. Eowe, of Chicago, gives the following as the best simple remedy 
for coUc in a boi-se: If it is ordinary colic, or gripes without flatulence, give 
him a dose of whisky, say from two to four oimces, that being generally 
handy; or a strong dose of peppermint or spearmint tea, hot; but if a drug 
store is near, give from one to two ounces each of laudanum and spirits of 
nitre; repeat the dose in half an hour if necessary. If it is flatulent colic, 
the horse bloated with gas, give a teaspoonful of saleratus in half a pint of 
warm Avater, repeat it in ten minutes; if this does no good, give an ounce of 
turpentine in half a pint of linseed oil; or you may give half an ounce of 
chloral hydrate in half a pint of cold Avater. In addition to the above direc- 
tions, in all cases give warm water injections, and let the hoi'se remain quiet, 
allowing him to roll if he wants, to give friction to the belly, and give soft 
feed and rest afterward for a day or two. 

The Massachusetts Ploughman recommends salt, and as this is knewn 
among housekeeepers as useful in colic, we give Avhat the writer says: 
"Spread a teacupful of salt upon the back of the animal over the kidneys 
and loins, and keep it saturated from twenty to thirty minutes, or longer if 
necessary. If the attack is severe, drench Avith salt Avater. I have a valua- 
ble bull, Aveighing nineteen or twenty hundred pounds, Avhich had a severe 
attack of cohc a year ago last summer. I applied salt to his back as above, 
and it being difticult to drench, we put a wooden bit into Ms moitth, keeping 
it open about tAvo inches, and spread salt iipon his tongue, which, together 
with the salt upon his back, relieved him at once, and Avithin a very short 
time equilibrium appeared fully restored. I have for several years past 
succeasfiilly applied this treatment to other animals in my herd.'' 



LI VK STO §K. 147 

Au ofticer wlio coiuiiiaudcd artillery during the late war used the follow- 
ing simple remedy for colic in horses, which he has tried with perfect suc- 
cess in hundreds of cases: Eub the horse well between the fore legs and 
around the girth with spirits of turpentine. Immediately relief follows. 

Another remedy is the following: Take some good home-made soap, and 
make about half a gallon of warm soap suds; then take a quart bottle, fill it, 
and drench the horse. Sometimes as much as a half-gallon may be needed. 

Bots—The hot larvae are liable to be found domiciled in the horse at any 
and at all times. It only does noticeable damage when the number accumu- 
lates in the passages, or when tliere is some disturbance in the digestion of 
the horse, when, it is said, it cuts through the membrane of the stomach, 
causing death to ensue. The bot-fly lays its eggs in the hair of the horse, 
about the flanks and frent legs, where they get to the tongue, and from 
thence are swallowed and hatch in the stomach. They live a certain period 
of time and are discharged, to become flies again. Several doses are recom- 
menied to be given to dislodge the grub, but when it is doing no perceptible 
harm many horsemen prefer to let it alone rather than medicate the horse. 
But some remove them by giving powdered aloes, asafoetida, each one- 
fourth ounce; mix in hot water, and when cold add oil of turpentine, sul- 
phuric ether, each one ounce. Give in linseed tea as a drench. 

Another authority says: Botsiu horses may be known by the animals oc- 
casionally nipping at their sides, and also by red pimples rising on the inner 
surface of the upper lip, which may be plainly seen by turning the lip up. 
The cure is eftected by taking two quarts new milk, one quart of molasses, 
and giving the horse the whole amount. In fifteen minutes afterward give 
two quarts warm sage tea; thirty minutes after give one pint of currier's oil, 
or enough to operate as physic. The cure will be complete, as the milk and 
molasses cause the bots to let go, the tea puckers them up, and the oil car- 
ries them entirely away. 

Another remedy is as follows: Give the animal one quart of sage tea, in 
which a large teaspoonful of soda or saleratus is dissolved. If not relieved 
in one hour, repeat the dose, and repeat hourly until relief is obtained. 

Foimcler. — Founder consists of inflammation of the laminae, or leaves of 
the hoof — the most sensitive portions of the foot, which serve to connect the 
interior part to the outer protecting covering of horn. It may be very severe 
and acute, or a simple stiffness of the limbs and muscles. In this case two 
drams of lobelia |may be given, and the limbs bathed with hot water and 
rubbed with liniment or kerosene oil. This may be continued for three or 
four days. Warm blanketing, with hot fomentations, will be useful. When 
the horse suffers very much, and the feet are hot and painful, a pound of 
salts should be given, followed by twenty-drop doses of tincture of aconite; 
the feet enveloped in large poultices of bran, or even sawdust, steeped in hot 
water, and the legs bathed in hot water and wrapped up. A deep, soft bed 
should be given, and the horse induced to lie down. After the worst symp- 
toms are over the hoof and sole should be rasped down and the feet kept in 
a puddle of clay and water. The shoes shoxild be removed. 

The following remedy, says an experienced farmer, of Texas, is a sure 
cure for founder, viz: " A large tablespoonful of pulverized alum amd a 
tablespoonful of pulverized saltpetre mixed. Moisten the dose and admin- 
ister it by' pulling out the tongue and placing the spoon as far back in the 
mouth as possible." 



118 THE FARM, 

Heaves. — If you want to have no trouble M'ith heaves in your horses be 
sure that they are fed no dusty and dirty hay, which is the prolific source of 
this annoyance. Ordinary clean hay can always be fed with safety if prop- 
erly cut up, moistened, and mixed with ground grain; but to feed the musty 
or dirty sorts is very injurious. Clover, o-wdng to its hability to crumble, 
often gets divty, even after storage, and should never be fed Avithout being 
previously moistened. 

Very bad cases of heaves have been cured by simply feeding the animal 
upon cut and moistened feed, of very good quahty and in small quantities, 
three times a day. For instance, four pounds of timothy hay and three quarts 
of feed made of equal quantities of oats, corn, and wheat bran ground to- 
gether. With this was mixed a small quantity of salt, and twice a week one 
dram of sulphate of iron and half an ounce of ground gentian root were given 
in the feed. A liberal bran mash every evening will also be very useful. A 
horse that cannot be cured by this treatment is of no vahie, and may be con- 
sidered past cure. 

The following is recommended by an agricultural authority: One dram 
of tinctui'e of ai'omatic sulphuric acid in a pint of water night and morning, 
allowing the animal to drink from a bucket. The horse should also receive 
in his food, night and morning, equal parts of powdered ginger, gentian, 
sulphur, cream of tartar, charcoal, licorice, elecampane, caraway seed and 
balm of Gilead buds (choiDped fine), the dose to be an ounce. Be careful 
and not overfeed the animal. 

Still another remedy is the following: Asafoetida, pulverized, one ounce; 
camphor gum, pulverized, one-half ounce; mix and divide into four powders; 
feed one every other night for a week. 

Epizootic in Horses. — The disease known as " the ei:)izootic " is a com- 
mon one, but is rarely so general as to be justly entitled to that distinction. 
It is simply a catarrhal affection of the bronchial tubes, the lining of the air- 
passages of the lungs, and the nasal sinuses, in fact, what may be called a 
very bad cold, with some fever. It is treated by a saline purgative, as 8 to 
12 oz. of Epsom salts, and afterwards half an ounce of saltpetre daily, with 
wai-ni drinks, general good nursing, and frequent rubbing of the limbs and 
body to excite the circulation. 

Sliying Horses. — A horsemau whose horse is given to shying, ought 
never to permit himself to evince symptoms of nervousness nor punish the 
animal for exhibitions of timidity. Whenever a horse directs the points of 
his ears in a certain direction, as though distrustful or afraid, the reins 
should be pulled in another dii-ection, thus diverting the attention of the 
a.nimal from the object causing the perturbation. If, on the other hand, 
force or harsh means are used to compel an acquaintance with the object 
feared the horse will be doubly excited, if n«t unmanageable. We have 
found, in cases of shying or halting at real or fancied objects of disquiet, that 
stopping the horse and using soothing language, answers a very good pur- 
pose. If the object is stationary, the horse, after a short time, Avill most 
usually advance in the du'ection of it, approaching cautiously till satisfied 
no danger is to be apprehended, when he will resume his way in a quiet 
mood. But if chastised for shying, he will have two obgects of fear instead 
of one, and become more confirmed in the habit of distrustfubiesB. 

Best Matei'ial for Stable Floors. — A Western writer says: " I have 
used plank, macadamj cinders and coal-tar mixed, and clay po^^nded hard 



LIVE STOCK. 140 

for Btable floor, but the best material for the purpose, and which gives me 
the most satisfaction, especially on the score of cleanliness, is good, hard 
brick, laid edgeAvays, with an inclination of about one-quarter of an inch to 
the foot; the more level the floor is, the easier it is for the horse. Many a 
horse has been ruined by standing on a stable floor with too much inclina- 
tion. Persons making stable floors should study the comfort of then- ani- 
mals. Another great advantage of brick is, that it is always moist, which is 
an object to be taken into account, as the hoof never becomes dry, conse- 
quently there is no danger of contraction, providing the shoer leaves the frog 
alone, which should not be cut, not even the ragged edges of it. I have used 
the brick floor for the last three or four years, and am well satisfied that 
there is nothing better. 

Scratches on Horses. — A veterinary authority says he has never known 
a failure of carrot poultice for scratches on horses, and he gives the f®llowing 
directions, probably valuable, as carrot has an excellent effect on many un- 
healthy sores: Wash the sores thoroughly with warm, soft water and castile 
soap, then rinse them off with clear water, after which rub dry with a cloth. 
Now grate some carrots (about' a pint after grated) and bind them on the 
sores. The best way to bind it on is to take a cloth and wrap it around the 
sores, letting the lower edge come close down to the hoof; then tie a cord 
around this lower end, after which' put the grated carrot into the opening at 
the top of the cloth, press it down around the sores, then tie another cord 
around the top of the cloth, a little above the fetlock. This should be re- 
peated every day for four or five days, when the scratches will be cured. 

Ringbones on Colts. — For ringbones on colts, first pay at*^^ention t» 
shoeing. If he Avalks on the toe, have a high heel to the shoes; but if he 
strikes the heel first, let it be thin and the toe high. If there is inflamma- 
tion, reduce it by rest and Avater bandages. Then bUster with the following: 
Powdered cantharides, Venice turpentine, and rosin, each two ounces; lard, 
two pounds. Melt the last three together, and when not too hot stir in the 
cantharides. When the pustules appear, omit for a few days. Then apply 
again and alternate for three or four times. Eemember that in all diseases 
or troubles of this kind there will be more or lees fever, and attention should 
be given to the general health of the animal, even when no particular symp- 
toms of illness are seen 

Cure for Spavin and Ringbone. — Venice turpentine and Spanish flies, 
of each, two ounces; euphorbium and aqua ammonia, of each, one ounce; 
red precipitate, one half ounce; lard, one and a half pounds. Pulverize all, 
and put into the lard; simmer slowly over coals, not scorching or burning, 
and pour off, free of sediment. For ringbones, cut off the hair, and rub the 
ointment well into the lumps once in forty-eight hours. For spavins, once 
in twenty-four hours for three mornings. Wash well previous to each appli- 
cation with suds, rubbing over the place with a smooth stick, to squeeze out 
a thick, yellow matter. This has removed very large nngbones. 

Treatment of Sick Horse:,. — The practice of forcing a horse to stand on 
his legs, or walk about, while laboring under an attack of colic, is most in- 
human. The same remark is also applicable to the plan of exercising a 
horse during the time he is under the purgative action of a dose of physic, 
Jle should be moved gently about before the medicine commences to operate, 
but never after. Do those barbarians who knock the anjmal about while 



150 THE FARM. 

euduring the pains of colic or when suffering the purgative action of medi- 
cine, ever think of Avhat they are doing ? If they Avere treated themselves on 
the same plan under similar circumstances, they would soon come to their 
senses regarding the management of the unfortunate animal which is placed 
ixnder their charge. 

A Muzzle *>r Biting Horses. — This dangerous habit is taught the 
horses by thoughtless OAATiers or drivers by playing with them when colts, or 
teasing them when full grown. A sharp cut with a whip across the horse's 
nose when he bites may serve to break him from the habit; but when the 
case is worse and incurable, a muzzle for this purpose may be made of 
strips of light hoop iron or of leather. A band may be made to encircle the 
muzzle to Avhich strips of leather or iron are fastened. At the bottom of the 
■luzzle a round piece of leather should be fastened by rivets to keep the 
strips in their place 

How to Save Oats in Feeding. — A saving may be effected in the ccm- 
sumption of oats for horses by simply soaking them in tepid watc«. Practi- 
cal experiments which have been made show that by this method the ration 
for each animal may be reduced by a third. Horses whose teeth have seen 
their best days masticate the grain in its ordinary condition insufficiently, 
and younger animals often eat so greedily that the greater proportion of it is 
swallowed whole. This waste maybe obviated by the simple method recom- 
mended, which so far softens the grain that it is more completely masticated 
and digested, and consequently yields more nutriment. Three hours is a 
sufficient length of time to soak the grain, provided the water is not too 
cold. 

How Blindness is Produced. — It is said that dark stables tend to pro- 
duce blindness in animals. A veterinary surgeon says: '^ Darkness produces 
blindness, because nature is outraged in the fact that the sight of the eyes is 
destroyed by want of light to present objects properly to the vision, and 
thus, by continiied inactivity, producing blindness. Even so is blindness, or 
imperfect vision, produced by an over-action of light upon the retina of the 
eye, as is always the case Avheu light is admitted by a window directly in 
front of the horse. Nothing is worse than this light, so admitted. Nature is 
outraged, and as a penalty we have nervous, fretful horses, shyers, crib- 
bers, balkers, runaways, and anything but a reliable and pleasant horse." 

Care of Horses' Legs. — Few men who handle horses give proper 
attention to the feet and legs. Especially is this the case with the farmer. 
Much time is often spent in rubbing, brushing and smoothing the hair on the 
sides and hips, but the feet are not properly cared for. The feet of a horse 
require ten times as much, for in one respect they are almost the entire 
horse. All the grooming that can be done won't avail anything if the horse 
is forced to stand Avhere his feet are filthy, for his feet will become disordered 
and then the legs will get badly out of fix, and with bad legs and feet there 
, is not much hope for anything. In short, to those owning horses we would 
say attend to the feet and legs. 

How to Tell a Horse's Age. -The editor of the Southern Planter sq^jw: 
The other day we met a gentleman from Alabama, who have us a piece of 
information as to ascertaining the age of a horse after it has passed the 
ninth year, which was quite new t'o us, and will be, we are sure, to most of 
r-nr readers. It is this: After the horse is nine years old, a wrinkle comes in 



tlVS STOCK. I6l 

the eyelid, at the upper corner of the lower lid, and every year thereafter he 
has one well-detined wrinkle for each year of his age over nine. If, for in- 
stance, a horse has three wrinkles, he is twelve; if four, thirteen. Add the 
number of wrinkles to nine, and you will always get at it. So says the gen- 
tleman; and he is confident it Avill never fail. 

Sa\%'diist for Stalilei^. — Nothing makes so soft and easy a bed for our 
" dumb animals" as sawdust, more particularly the horse, as it is natural, 
before lying down, either by pawing or stepping back and forward, to brush 
all their bedding, if straw is used, under their hind feet, but would be less 
liable to move the sawdust. As regards injury to horses' feet or lungs on 
account of inhaling the dry dust, we know of a stable where horses are let, 
and I was informed by the owner that he had used sawdust for twelve 
years and never had been able to discover any bad effects from the use of it, 
and pointed out several horses that had been thus bedded for ten or twelve 
years; and had sold the mamire at the usual rates, and never had heard of 
any objections on account of the sawdiist. 

The Watering of Hox-ses— M. P. Cartledge, member of the Royal 
College of Veterinary Surgeons, urges the great necessity of allowing an un- 
limited supply of Avater to horses; and he alludes to the veiy mistaken 
notion among grooms and others having the control of horses that water 
ad lihitain is injurious. While grooms and others drink without stint them- 
selves, they profess to know when a horse has drank sufficient, and so take 
aAvay the pail before his natural wants are half satisfied. Horses Avill not 
drink to excess if watered frequently, and in their case drinking does no 
harm. 

Cribbing. — Cribbing is a vice which springs from habit more than any 
other cause. It begins frequently from a desire to ease the teeth from in- 
convenience or perhaps pain, at that period when the dentition is perfecting, 
and then becomes fixed upon the horse as a vice. It is not injurious except 
when accompanied with "wind sucking," which is a series of deep inspira- 
tions by which flatulence and belly-ache are caused. When the habit is fixed 
on a horse it is difficult to break it, and the only effective method is to use a 
muzzle which prevents him from thus using his teeth. 

Liinseed Oil for Hoi-ses. — Linseed oil is not only a valuable restorative 
for sick horses, but is exceedingly useful in cases of inflammation of the 
membi-anes, peculiar to the organs of respiration and digestion; it shields 
and lubricates the same, tranquilizes the irritable state of the parts, and 
favors healthy action. Put a couple of handfuls of seed into a bucket and 
pour a gallon and a half of boiling water upon it; coyer it up a short time, 
then add a couple of quarts of cold water, when it will be fit for use. In case 
of an irritating cough add some honey. 

AViiidgalls or Puffs. — ^Windgalls are puffy swellings occurring along . 
the tendons of the legs of horses, below the knee. They are the results of 
sprains or strains of the tendons, and are generally filled mth synovial fluid, 
or lymph, or serum. A padded bandage, with astringent lotions applied two 
hours a day^ at first, adding two hours every day after, until it is kept on 
continually, is the usual remedy. Eest fi-om work is helpful to a cure. 

Brittle Feet. — Some horses have such brittle feet that it is difficult to 
keep their shoes on. This is often caused by a sudden change from exces- 



152 THE FARM. 

give and long-continued wetness to extreme dryness. The best treatment is 
to rub the soles and shells of the feet with a mixture composed of the fol- 
lowing: Tar, two parts; beef suet, two parts; whale oil, four parts; beeswax 
and honey, one part each; melt over a slow fire, and mix well.' 

Ignorance in Slioeing. — Some blacksmiths who shoe horses do not 
know that the frog of the foot should be allowed to come to the ground; that 
it should not be pared down, as is frequently done, nor should it be touched 
when healthy. It is meant to pound upon the ground, and it is the pound- 
ing that it gets that is the life of the foot, and those horse-shoers who have 
not yet learaed this very important fact ought to learn it or quit business. 
Most of the diseases and defects of horses' feet come from cutting away the 
frog or by raising it by high shoes clear away from the ground. 

Avoiding Indigestion in Horses. — It is best to give a horse water be- 
fore giving oats. The water stays in the stomach a very short time, but is 
quickly absorbed or passed into the bowels, where it is absorbed and goes 
into the blood. The horse secretes a very large quantity — more than four 
quarts — of saliva while eating a meal, which is sufficient to reduce the food 
to a pulp suitable for its digestion. So that to give water soon after eating, 
except in very small quantity, would be apt to cause indigestion and waste 
of the food by excessive dilution. 

Flies and Horses. — A physician writing to the London Daily News 
recommends, to prevent the torment inflicted by the flies on hoi'ses, applica- 
tion to the latter, before harnessing, of a mixture of one part ci'ude carboHc 
acid with six or more parts of olive oil. This should be rubbed lightly all 
over the animal \\ith a rag, and applied more thickly to the interior of the 
ears and other parts most likely to be attacked. 

To Cool Horses Wlien Hot. — There is danger of congestion when cold 
water is thrown on the body of a horse when very hot and tired; and yet, 
how many do it ? The better way is to throw water freely on the fore legs 
of the animal. This corresponds to the well-known custom of persons, when 
overheated, bathing the wrists for some time before drinking much. 

To Recruit a Hide-Bound Horse.— To recruit a hide bound horse, give 
nitrate potassa (or saltpetre), four ounces; crude antimony, one ounce; 
sulphur, three ounces. Nitrate of potassa and antimony should be finely 
pulverized, then add the sulphur, and mix the whole well together. Dose, 
a tablespoonful of the mixture in a bran mash daily. 

Sprains and Bruises in Horses. — Dissolve an ounce of camphor in 
eight ounces of spirits of wine; then add one ounce of spirits of turpentine, 
one ounce of spirits of sal ammonia, half an ounce of oil of origanum and a 
tablespoonful of laudanum. Rub in a quarter of an hour with the hand, four 
times a day. 

Plies in Horse Statole^.—It is said that kerosene oil slightly sprinkled 
on the floor of the horse stables will nerve to abate the nuisance of flies. It 
may be shaken out of a bottle through a hole in the cork. A pint will last a 
week for the purpose. 

Hemlock Cribs.—A horse will not bite a crib made of hemlock lumber, 
nor will rats, mice, or other vermin gnaAV through it. 



livt: stock. 153 

Worinii in Horses— Worms in horses are caused by hard work, poor 
food, and general neglect. For ordinary cases of worms, common salt, nu- 
tritious food, and pure water will prove satisfactory. Salt should always be 
kept in the stalls of horses. 

Over-Reacliiiig. — An over-reaching horse, one whose hind feet is fre- 
quently hitting the forward shoes, should wear heavy shoes forward and 
light ones behind. The theory is that the heavier hoof will be thrown a little 
farther ahead than the lighter one. 

■Worms ill tlie Rectum. —When a horse is affected with worms in the 
rectum there should be injected in the rectum, once daily for a week, a 
mixture of one pint of linseed oil and two drams of oil of turpentine. Feed 
at the same time bran mashes and oil meal. 

Sensitive Ja-ws. — Some horses are more sensitive than others in the 
upper jaw, and will not go up on the steel bar or snaffle upper-jaw bit. In 
such cases have a bit made of plain round leather, the usual size of the 
uppcfl*-jaw bit. 

Best Method of Cleaning Horses. — The best thing to clean a horse 
with is a corn-cob scrubbing-brush. It never can scratch his legs, as the 
currtj^-comb of tin does, while it does more work in the same time than curry- 
comb and brush put together. 

Hints to Breeders of Sliortliorns. — To learn a trade, is to do things 
precisely upon the same principles, and up to the same general standard 
that experts in the same trade attain to. The principles are simple, though 
the parts are complicated. So of Shorthorn cattle. They are, merely ma- 
chines for converting crude grain or grass into bone, muscle, adipose mat- 
ter, and hair; and the whole secret of excellence — the superiority of one 
beast over another — consists in their ability to convert the most crude food 
in a given time into the finest quality of the tissues named, so distributing 
these as to give us a roomy frame of bone in the parts where Ave want room 
for the vital organs and for the choicest cuts, and thick, fleshy, well-marbled 
roasts, and broad, well-marbled steaks, in the parts where best fiber is pro- 
duced. Such a conformation should be secured as will answer these ends so 
effectively as the engine is expected to generate steam through the consump- 
tion of fuel in the furnace. The conformation of the trunk of the cow is a 
subject worthy of very careful study. The bony frame is of secondary im- 
portance, the vital organs within being of the first importance, and the size 
and vigor of these, if accompanied by a liberal distribution oi cellular tissue 
throughout the system, ensures a rapid conversion of food into nutritive 
particles and the disposition of these in the various tissues. Large lungs, and 
large heart, stomach and liver give size and rotundity to the trunk and width 
to the bosom. A large stomach is of the utmost importance, because fur- 
nishing a large surface. From this the gastric juice issues, and when we 
consider the inner surface of the stomach, and the air cells of the lungs, we 
must prize an extended surface in those organs as highly as we do a large 
surface in a steam boiler if we expect great results. Two of the worse faults 
in the construction of a Shorthoi-n are the following, viz. : the ribs starting 
from the spine in a downward direction, giving a Avedge shape to the upper 
third of the chest; the other is a long rib deficient at the lower end, causing a 
curve upward in the lower line immediately back of the fore leg. We doubt 



154 TH^ FAttM, 

if any other two defects are so hard to breed out as these. A drooping rump 
or low carriage forward may be brought up in one or two crosses, so that 
Avith after care they may not reappear; but the defects in the chest pointed 
out above depend upon deficient \atal organs within. The re-organization 
and enlargement of the heart, lungs, stomach, and liver require many dis- 
creet crosses to accomplish. Passing from the chest backwards, we would 
call attention to the importance of the short ribs being long, and standing 
out horizontally from the spine, forming a level plane forward of the hips. 
This broad, level loin generally keeps company with a round, deep chest and 
is a point of excellence that should always be sought. The hind quarter 
that holds its width well back, carries a large amount of meat not repre- 
sented in the quarter that narrows in rapidly from the hip back. A perfect 
symmetrically-organized frame, with the fleshy part so Avell distributed and 
packed as to make it difficult to tell where one portion of the carcass ceases 
and the next begins This is the goal to be aimed at. The third and last 
subject, " quality," we will treat very briefly. No intelligent breeder while 
striving to increase the depth and breadth of the carcass, loses sight of the 
equally important point, the textiirc of those parts of the animal that are to 
be consumed as human food. This idea of texture is never lost sight of by 
the fruit grower, and the excellencies which fix the value of the apple, viz., 
fair size, smooth surface, and tender, juicy meat, are the three things upon 
which we base our estimate of a Shorthorn. Now, the common notion is 
that all animals that handle mellow have high flavored, tender flesh. This 
is an erroneous idea, proved every day upon the butcher's block. We couple 
two animals together, expecting to secure well-fattened, ready feeders in the 
progeny they will generally transmit it. But if both the parents have dark, 
unsavory fl§sh, they and all their get, and all the progeny after for all time, 
will have the same, unless modified and improved by new crosses having 
light-colored, saA'ory flesh. 

Selecting Breeding ivVaies — The first object which any bi'eeder of cat- 
tle or sheep must keep in view is that his stock must be healthy. In the selec- 
tion of a male animal, therefore, the first things to be considered are the in- 
dications by which it may be possible to form a judgment as to his constitu- 
tion. There can be no doubt that this is one of the important points of form 
or shape to which it is material for a breeder to look into in the selection of 
either a bull or ram. It is not enough to observe that they have wide breasts 
or bosoms, but the width wliich is noticed in looking at them from the front, 
should be continued along the brisket, which should show great fullness in 
the part under the elbows; it is also important that they should be thick 
through the region of the heart. 

Another point to be carefully considered is the muscular system. Grreat 
muscular power is not only indicative of a good constitution and good health, 
but it has a merit in itself. Large muscles are the usual accompaniment of 
strength of constitution, and it also shows that when ready for the shambicri 
there will be a good proportionate mixture of muscle and fat in the meat. lu 
both bulls and rams a thick neck is proof of large muscles, and there can 
hardly be a greater fault in either animal than to have this wanting. Other 
indications of muscle will be more difficult to observe in sheep than in cattle. 
In a good bull there should be a full muscle on each side of the backbone, 
just behind the top of the shoulder blades. He should also have the mus- 
cles at the outside of the thigh full and extending nearly to the hough. A 
bull having these indications will seldom be found deficient in muscle. 



LIVE STOCK. 



155 




Ringing a Bull — We give au illustration of a plau lor putting a ring 
through the nose of a bull worthy of the attention of stock-breeders. A ring 
is undoubtedly the safest mode of controlling the bull. Clamp rings having 
two knobs, which press into the nostrils, may be useful for occasional use, 
but a good stout copper ring should he put through the cartilage of the nose 
of every thoroughbred bull before he is four years old. This will last him 
for his lifetime, and whether tied up in the stable or out for exercise, it will 
effectually control him. The old-fashioned plan of inserting the rings was 
by burning a hole through the 
cartilage with a hot iron, but 
this ATas a cruel and difficult 
process. The plan suggested 
is to use a Aveapon styled a 
trochar, similar to the surgical 
instrument employed for 
" tapping " in case of dropsy, 
and for " hoove " in cows. It 

is a sharp-ijointed, round dagger (the point three-sided), carrying a silver- 
plated shield reaching from the upper part of the point to the handle. The 
above illustration will further explain. 

The sheath being on the dagger when the operation is performed, the 
whole is ea^sily pushed through the nose, the sharp point of the dagger 
piercing the nostril with so little pain that one man can easily hold the head 
still. The dagger is then withdrawn, leaving the sheath in the hole. The 
ring is then inserted into the end of the sheath, which is slowly withdraAvn, 
leaving the ring in place. This is then closed and fastened with a screw. 

These rings should be so 
well- made that both the 
hinge and the screw should 
be perfectly smooth, and 
so fitting as to take a prac- 
ticed eye to notice the join- 
ing. 

The manner in which 
the operation is performed 
will be seen at a glance at 
the accompanying engrav- 
ing. 

The ring should turn 
freely round in the incision, 
Avhich, having been made 
with a three-cornered ciTt, 
will be more sensitive 
against a pull than the smooth-burned hole. Indeed, it is sometimes neces- 
sary with the latter cruel operation to take the ring out after a time and re- 
sort again to burning, in order to make the cartilage sufficiently sensitive for 
the ring to be effective in managing the animal. 

An Inexpensive Relisli for Stock. — Stock men of large experience ap- 
preciate the need of salt for stock, and usually make such provision that ani- 
mals under-their care are daily provided with this relish. There are, how- 
ever, many farmers who look upon salt as a luxury enjoyed by their stock 
when placed within reach, but not necessary to their thrift or comfort. Ob- 




156 THE FARM, 

eervation and experience have proven to those who have given most at- 
tention to the subject that cattle require for best results the salt they 
crave. 

The French Government at one time commissioned a number of practical 
and scientific men to investigate the subject of salt as a relish for stock, and 
ascertain the quantity required for different animals. While only approximate 
figures could be arrived at in the numerous experiments made to settle this 
matter, a scale was fixed upon by this commission as the minimum daily al- 
loAvances for the difierent animals in ordinary condition. In this a working 
ox or a milch cow is allowed two ounces of salt per diem. Repeated trials 
appeared to prove that the amount specified produced in milch cows the 
greatest flow of milk. Oxen fed the same amount presented sleek coats, 
while others receiving uo salt were rough, mangy, and ill conditioned. The 
scale in question allowed for fattening stall-fed oxen, two and a half to four 
ounces of salt per day, and for fattening pigs, from one to two ounces. For 
sheep, from one-half ounce to two-thirds of an ounce Avas alloAved. One 
ounce was set down as the daily portion for horses and mules. 

The figures given above possess a practical value to feeders of stock, in 
that they represent the respective amounts best calculated to produce de- 
sirable results in the different animals named, and give an idea of the 
amount required by each kind. On small farms with few animals salt can 
be dealt out in small quantities each day, but where herds and flocks are 
numerous, salt boxes and troughs become a necessity, and ai'e in any case a 
convenient and economical arrangement. These troughs or boxes ought, of 
course, to be in sheltered places and at points where animals can have daily 
access to them. Home should be placed at elevations to suit horses and 
cows, and others set Avithin reach of sheep. 

A plan in favor in the far West, and which recommends itself on the 
ground of economy, is mixing salt and hardwood ashes in equal proportions, 
combined with a sufficient amount of water to make a solid lump or mass. 
These lumps are distributed in the trough, where, with diligent licking, 
each animal gets a small quantity, the belief being that they will take in 
this form n© more than they really require. In addition to the fact that salt 
is necessary to the thrift of animals, a strong argument in its favor in locali- 
ties where cattle and sheep are allowed extended runs during the day, is 
that it proves a strong attraction, bringing them home at night without other 
incentive. 

Cattle ill Coriistallts._A Kansas farmer writes: If cattle are allowed 
to run in stalk fields £or an indefinite time they are apt to die from eating 
too much food of an indigestible character. Cornstalks when left standing 
in the field become woody and indigestible. Cattle when allowed to run, fill 
themselves so full that the stomach becomes clogged, the food heats, does 
not pass off, and the animal dies. For three winters I have fed my cows on 
shocked cornstalks, feeding no hay or straw, and in all cases they have done 
better than when fed on hay. In the winter of 1880 and 1881, I wintered 
3,500 head of Avarking oxen. I bought all the stalk fields that were acces- 
sible, allowed the cattle to run in them three hours each day, Avhen I had 
them driven out. My reasons for so doing Avas not on account of smut, but 
because the stalks had become hard, woody and indigestible. I lost no cat- 
tle from this management, and returned them in the spring Avith a loss of 
only two to the hundred. Feeders have fed beef cattle for years on 
shock corn; they consider it the best and safest kind of feed, 



LIVE STOCK 



157 



Relieving Ctioked Cattle. — The accompanying engraving represents 
the instruments employed for reheving choked cattle, as recommended by 
Prof. Simonds, of the Boyal Veterinary College of England. 

" In cases of choking," says Prof. S., " the amount of danger may mostly 
be calculated by the abdominal distension, for de ith results from the lungs 
being unable to expand in conse- 
quence of Mie pressure of the ru- 
men against the diaphragm." 

He says: "In many cases 
prior to unchoking the patient, 
the gaseous compounds which 
are disengaged from the ingesta 
and distend the rumen, must be 
given an exit to, by puncturing 
the rumen, to prevent suffoca- 
tion." 

The instrument for unchoking, 
as shown in the sketch, con- 
sists of a probang and a gag; the 
latter is to be placed is the mouth 
as shown. Two assistants ai'e re- 
quired. One of these should be 
placed on. either side of the ani- 
mal, holding the handle of the 
gag, which protrudes from the 
side of the mouth, with one hand, 
and the opposite horn with the 
other. They must also keep the 
head elevated so as to bring it as 
near as possible in a straight line 
with the neck. We give Prof. 
Simonds's instructions in opera- 
ting as follows: 

"The probang being held as 
represented, is to be passed 
through the opening in the gag 
and carried carefully over the 
dorsum of the tongue into the 
pharynx, and from thence pushed 
inwards until it reaches the ob- 
struction. Sufficient and well- 
regulated pressure is now to be 
made until the obstruction yields, 
when it is to be driven by the in- 
strument into the rumen. Care 
should always be taken to propel 
the root nxto the fir nt stomach, and we should never rely on the power of the 
esophagus to do this after we have succeeded in removing it from its origi- 
na'. situation. "Want of attention to this simple rule has often protracted suf- 
fering to the animal, and not unfrequently death. The probangs in ordinary 
uae are seldom of sufficient length, nor are the bulbs with which they are 
tipped of a proper shape. The instrument should not be less than six and a 
Jialf feet long, and the bulbs should be large and slightly cup-shaped," 




158 THE FARM. 

Bone Disease in Milch Co-ws. — For more than half a century there 
have been occasional outbreaks of a peculiar disease in New England, mostly 
affecting mUch cows, and commonly known as bone-ail or stifle joint lame- 
ness. Heretofore the trouble has been chiefly confined to hilly sections, but 
seems noAV to be approaching the valleys. 

This disease, technically called Cachexhia ossljraga, is not confined to 
the stifle joint, frequently affecting the hip and other joints also. In one 
case, where the hi}) joint was affected, examination showed that the articular 
siirface of the head of the tibia or shank bone had been worn through by its 
friction with the femur, or thigh bone, by the absorption of the floating carti- 
lage between the ends of the bones. Similar conditions were noticed in 
other instances. As it is believed this cartilage cannot be regenerated, it 
was at first a question whether the disease was curable. Before investiga- 
tion, its cause was attributed to the phosphatic materials in the feed, and 
this idea has been fully established. Where such materials were supplied in 
the form of bran, the disease was thought to be occasioned by the excessive 
use of such feed, as it was knoAvu that such excess changes +.he bone into a 
sort of phosphate, while the healthy bone is an insoluble phosphate. 

In former outbreaks, bone meal was found to be an effective remedy, and 
in recent instances it has been used Avith good results. A 8uffield, Conn., 
man, of considerable experience, says that tAvo ounces of the meal in a pint 
of bran, three times a week during the early summer and fall feeding, will 
generally cure, if accompanied Avith plenty of salt. In aggravated cases, 
hoAvever, the free use of this material is recommended. Still, care must be 
exercised lest it should be supplied too freely, as an excess is sometimes 
liable to injure the butter, because the putrid, oily matter of the bone is ex- 
creted by the udder as a sort of oleomargaiine. But if the meal has been 
thoroughly clarified, this trouble is less apt to occur, and it may be avoided 
altogether by the use of cot-ton-sced meal, which is rich in phosphates Avith- 
out containing the obnoxious matter Hable to be in bone meal. Bran is also 
largely made up of phosphates, but it is Avell to add corn meal. 

The necessary mineral element can probably be furnished in hay that has 
been manured Avith superphosphates, Avhich furnish lime and phosphoric 
acid that are greedily taken in by the plant. Indeed, the recent outbreak is 
accounted for by the fact that Avhere it occurs, little, if any, mineral fertil- 
izers are used. They are noAV being apphed more extensively, and the 
gradual disappearance of the disease Avill doubtless folloAv. 

Marks of a Good Co-w. — Those who keep but one or tAvo cows natur- 
ally want them for general purposes, do not want a mere bvrtter cow nor yet 
a mere milk animal, but one AA^hich combines both in as great a degree as 
can be found. Such cows are not plentiful, Ave admit, or at least are not 
often for sale at a moderate price, so that when they are offered, it behooves 
Avould-be purchasers to l>e able to tell them. 

We do not believe iu very small coavs, nor yet in large, heaA-y animals, as 
neither, as a rule, are capable of filling the bill, the former too often falling 
short in the quantity, while the large ones are apt to run too much to flesh 
to make them profitable dairy animals. The medium-sized ones invariably 
produce the best results, and a heaA'v milker and a large butter maker is 
seldom fat, as the majority of the food she consumes is converted into milk 
and butter. The head should be fine but bony, Avith small horns, large, 
mealy nose and shapely ears.' The base of the horns and the iniside of the 
ears should be of a bright golden color. We have never yet seen an animal 



LIVJS STOCK. 



159 



Vrith horns and ears well colored (golden yellow) which failed to make a fine 
quality of butter and highly colored. It is an unmistakable sign. The body 
should be of good size, and the width and depth rapidly increase as it runs 
to the rear or hind quarters. The milk veins should be large and prominent, 
and the udder need not necessarily be large, so it is not meaty, but is small 
when milked out. The teats should be of good size, and only have a single 
hole in each; we have seen quite a number with teats having two holes. 
The hair should be fine and soft, while the skin should be pliable, and 
almost as soft to touch as velvet or kid. In color it should be tinged deeply 
with yellow, especially on the shoulders and flank and along the back. 
Color of the hau- is rather a secondary matter, though the best cows are 
generally yellow, tawn, gray or white, with dark marks edged with yellow. 
Black cows but seldom prove to be good general-purpose ones, though of 
course there are exceptions frequently met with. 

Cattle Rack. — We give the following illustrated design for a rack to feed 
cattle from in the yard. We think 
it far superior in point of economy 
and convenience to anything of the 
kind we have seen. It can easily be 
made by anyone possessing ordi- 
nary skill in using tools: 

The shape, as will be seen, is six 
sided, or in the form of a hexagon. 
It consists of six upright posts five 
feet long (3 by 4 scantling will an- 
swer, or round poles 3 or 4 inches 
through will do very well), and 
twelve boards, .each one foot in 
width and five feet long. These 
latter nailed to the posts horizon- 
tally will form the box. To 
strengthen the whole and keep the 
cattle from stepping over the sides, 
nail strips of thick boards or plank 
flatwise across the upper end of 

the posts. Then nail two boards diagonally upon each side, extending from 
the top of the posts to the bottom of the box, leaving a space of about a foot 
and a half in the center on a Une with the upper edge of the box. These 
slanting boards serve as braces, and give strength and firmness to the 
whole structure, and make six feeding places for the cattle. If scantling is 
used for posts, it would be well to hew off the corner from each, so as to 
make the boards fit well. 

Mode of Construction.— Na,i\ the boards to two sets of posts to form two 
opposite sides. Cut two strips of boards about ten feet four inches long; 
stand the side upright and nail these strips across the top and bottom — 
across the diameter — then bring the other ends within five feet, and nail on 
the boards across the end; you will then have three sides formed. Nail on 
the other two opposite sides and end. Put on the braces and it is done. It 
can be moved to different parts of the yard, and with care will last for years. 

Economy in Feeding Cattle—There is more waste in feeding than in 
anything else on the farm. Wheat straw, corn-stalks, and even chaff may be 




CATTLE RACK. 



160 TITE FARM. 

fed, if propei'ly prepared. With a fodder cutter that not only cuts but 
crushes, corn fodder can be made as palatable as clover hay, and wheat 
straw, when cut into short lengths and mixed with hay, answers excellently 
when grain is fed with it. Cows will always eat chaff if it is mixed with cut 
food. If all such feeding material as corn fodder and wheat straw is cut up 
fine, and well moistened, salted, and mixed with bran, shorts and meal, 
with a pound of linseed or cotton-seed meal additional, a mess will thus be 
prepared that is not only noui-ishing and healthy, but superior to hay alone. 
It is not intended here to recommend straw in the place of better food, but 
we claim that if a saving can be effected by feeding straw in connection with 
concentrated food, there will be a saving, not only of the hay in the loft by 
reason of the substitution, but also of much that annually goes to waste. 

How wasteful it is to throw fodder and straw over the fence into the farm- 
yard to be picked over and trampled in the dirt without being consumed. 
Every pound of fodder and straw is valuable and can be put to useful service, 
which is very important when the winter's supply of hay seems unlikely to 
last, and when the cold season is unusually long. Nor is it proper to allow 
fodder to remain all the year stacked in the fields, for it is almost every time 
that the A^inds blow it down, where it remains until fed, but it is not then in 
as projDer condition as if well cured and placed under cover. As to using 
straw for bedding, tliis, also, is wastefully done, as if it possessed no value; 
and if chaff is not preferred for feeding, let it be used as an absorbent in the 
stables, for which purpose nothing is superior to it. A crop of turnips, or 
what may be better, beets, parsnips, and carrots, should be grown for stock, 
not only for their value for feeding purposes, in proportion to their cost, but 
also because they afford a succulent diet in winter when every other kind of 
food is dry, and at times not relished. 

How Good Cows are Ruined. — Milking is an art, and the farm hand 
who knows how to milk properly is more valuable to the careful dairyman 
than any other help. Of course, anybody can milk, and some can milk a 
dozen cows before breakfast. The careful manager, however, is not so anx- 
ious for fast help as he is to employ those who are careful. The operation 
should never be hurried, but the milk should be drawn steadily, and, as it 
flows, naturally. Some cows have very tender teats, and the rapid milkman 
forgets this fact in his endeavor to make speed. The cow that is naturally im- 
patient and fretful does not like to submit to rough handling, and her disposi- 
tion is soon ruined by such treatment. With the constant irritation she will 
fail in quantity, and be less productive, just as any human being would fail to 
perform faithful service when laboring under mental affliction or trouble. 
As the udder becomes distended and filled with milk, the desire on the part 
of the cow is to be relieved of its contents, and she willingly submits to it 
for the relief it occasions. The constant practice of being milked at stated 
intervals impresses itself strongly upon her, and she will seldom offer resist- 
ance without cause. When a cow, therefore, that has been a patient deliverer 
of milk becomes fractious, the fault can always be traced to the milkman. 
The careless dairyman is the one who complains of the failure of his cows to 
keep up the flow, and bloody milk, garget and other evils are the results of 
his own bad management. There is another point in the treatment of cows 
that demands attention, and that is allowing them to stand a long time wait- 
ing to be milked. With cows that give large yield it is very painful, and 
when the udders have been filled to their utmost, and the milkman is not on 
hand to relieve them, they become exceedingly nervous and restless. This 



LIVi: STOCK. 



161 



will do more to cause a cow to go dry before her period than anything else, 
and many a good cow has been sent to the shambles through diminution of 
quantity, simply because nature has revolted at her sufferings, and allowed 
her to dry up because her storehouse was not emptied of its contents at the 
proper times. She should also be milked to the last drop, if possible, and 
as the last portion of milk is claimed to be the richest, the udder should be 
left with nothing in it. With regularity in feeding aud milking, and kind 
treatment at all times, the cow will not only become gentle, and remain so, 
but will milk on several weeks longer than otherwise. An experienced 
dairyman needs help that are skillful, and he knows how to judge the milk- 
man's work by the behavior of his cows. When a stable of cows begin to 
give trouble in milking, it is only necessary to observe the manner in which 
they are milked in order to 
cure the evil. The udder 
of a cow is a very delicate 
structure, and she quickly 
rebels at rough usage or 
impi'oper periods of milk- 
ing. 

To Prevent Cattle 
from Hooking Fences. — 
The mode herewith illus- 
trated will be found a sure 
cure for cattle that hook 
or put their heads through 
fences. Take a one-eighth 
inch annealed wire ten 
inches long; make a ring 
in one end (one inch and a 
half) ; grind the other end 
sharp, to punch through 
the gristle in the nose. The 
animal's head has to be 
fastened securely in the 
stanchions, in order to 
bore the holes through the 
horns, which should be 
done with a three-eighth inch bit; then punch the wire through, and make the 
same sized ring in the sharp end; now take a cord that will run easily through 
the holes in the horns, and tie one end to the ring on one side and pass the 
cord through the holes in the horns to the other ring; the wire should be 
bent up above the nostrils to prevent the breath from rotting the cord; the 
cord should not be very tight when put on, for the rains will tighten it enough. 
To keep a bull from jumping and hooking fence, put on the above and a 
poke with the sword or arm running through a wire ring in the nose, long 
enough to keep the arm from bearing on the vnre, and *he animal is at home 
all the time. 

Currying Milch Cows._To the farmer the idea of currying a cow, 
milch or otherwise, is an absurdity; but to dairymen who have highly-bred 
cows, who take a pride in their business and get the top price of the market 
for their produce, it is a matter of moment, in that it is known to increase the 
milk flow and the butter produce by ten to twenty per cent. 




TO PBEVENT CATTLE FBOM HOOKING FENCES. 



162 



THE FABM. 



There are many points in the conduct of a dairy, unknown, indeed, un- 
thought of Iq^ farmers, that will presently have a prominent place in their 
management, very much to the benefit of themselves and those who receive 
and make use of their produce. 

Among those are: Succulent food, protection from inclement weather, 
kind handling, thorough and careful milking, full and regular feeding, clean 
stabling (when stabled), and an absence of foul odors, good ventilation, 
plenty of light and that thorough cleansing of the skin without which no 
milch cow can perform her duty thoroughly and well,. With all these we 
must, to have a " tip top " article of butter, have the washing of the udder and 
teats before milldng, and with this an entire absence of the filth accumulated 
in feeding and lounging between milkings. 

Of all these, one of the most important is that of periodical currying, in 
that it cleanses the hide of superfluous hair, keeps it active and healthful 
and void of that peculiar odor so commonly found in milk and sometimes in 
butter. It promotes the secretion and disposition of the putrid particles of 
the animal system which would otherwise be absorbed by the secretory 

glands and be carried ofl:* in the 
milk, and leaves the latter not 
only purer but of a much better 
quahty, and gives promise to 
the butter maker of a higher 
color and a purer flavor to the 
butter from the churn, hence a 
higher price in the market. 

Herein may seem lojs of 
trouble over details, but when 
reduced to a system they occupy 
little of time, labor or expense. 

To Prevent Cows Kick- 
ing — We give an illustration 
of a patented device for pre- 
venting a cow fi'om kicking, 
which is said by those who have used it to be effectual. It consists of a Hght 
iron semi-circle intended to go over the back of the animal, with a joint and 
ratchet at the side, and a wooden block at each end, which fits to the flank of 
the cow, and prevents her from moving her foot forward. The inventor 
claims that it can be affixed in three or four seconds and that its operation is 
neither cruel nor hai-sh. On the contrary the habit has been entirely cured 
after it is used for a short time. It will doubtless suggest a modification 
that will be iiseful to farmers without infringing upon the patent. 

Black Tongue ill Cattle — The symptoms are inflammation of the 
mouth, swelling of the head and face, discharge of bloody saliva, and high 
fever marks the first stages. Ulcers soon appear under and on the sides of the 
tongue. Then the throat and neck swell, and if the disease is not checked 
gangrene ensues and the animal dies. The disease is said to yield readily to 
early and proper treatment. The following has proved very successful: The 
animal should be bled from the neck vein. Give him castor oil, one pint, to 
be repeated in ten hours if it should not operate. Then use the following: 
Powdered burnt alum, four ounces; chloride of lime, two ounces; corn meal, 
two quarts. Mix, and with this powder swab the mouth frequently. 




TO PKEVENT COWS KICKING. 



LIV]^ SfOCK. 163 

Lice on Cattle. — A correapondent of the Country Gentleman says on 
this subject: The more common remedies recommended for relieving cattle 
and stock from lice are more or less dangerojis to life or health, and mnst 
be used Avith extreme care. An unfailing remedy which may be used by 
any one without danger to life or limb would be a boon to many farmers. 
Such a remedy we have in the bee-larkspur of our flower-gardens. A strong 
tea made from the seeds or foliage of the plant can be iised as a wash with 
perfect safety. Any part of the plant may be used in making the Avash, 
either green or dried. The plant should be gathered before it is frosted, 
and cured and preserved as other herbs are. In the use of kerosene, mer- 
curial ointment, tobacco, etc., great care must be used or injury results from 
absorption; it enters the limbs or other parts of the animal and is often a 
permanent injury. No such danger need be apprehended in the use of 
larkspur. All the parts where the verudn lodge should be well scrubbed 
with the wash, and if thoroughly well done in a pleasant, mild day, one ap- 
plication is sufficient. In former days, when school children were troubled, 
I have heard old people tell theu- experience iu using this remedy to their 
complete satisfaction. Another equally harmless remedy is aloes in fine 
poAvder, which may be used dry by filling a common pepper box Avith the 
poAvder and sprinkling it freely into the hair on the neck, back, sides and 
rump of the infested animal. Rub it thoroughly through the hair and on 
the skin with the ends of the fingers. Leave the animal undisturbed for a 
Aveek, then card thoroughly and apply as before. Continue this at intervals 
of a week, till not a liAing parasite is left. Usually two applications, if thor- 
oughly made, will suffice. 

Another writer says that to destroy lice on live stock he has found no- 
thing better than strong carbolic soapsuds. The soap usually sold under 
that name is not strong enough for the purpose. It may be easily prepared 
and at any degree of strength that may be required. Get a pound of car- 
bolic acid ciystals, which may be had at any wholesale druggist's. I get 
them in Boston at a cost of sixty cents per pound. Take ten pounds of com- 
mon bar soap, put in a pan with a little water and heat until dissolved. 
Take out the cork from the bottle containing the acid, and set it in hot Avater, 
which will cause the acid to become fluid; add this to the soap and stir well. 
Set away to cool and you Avill have a soap at a small cost that Avill be strong 
enough to kill any vermin which infest domestic animals, and which will 
cure barn itch or any cutaneous diseases to which they are liable. It is 
good to cleanse and heal sores, and a wash of it will be found good where 
animals are hide-bound and the skin out of condition; it will be found good 
to wash the inside of poultry houses to render them sweet and kill and ^re- 
vent vermin. It is a cheap, safe and sure remedy, and should find a place 
in all well regulated premises. 

A stock-grower, writing to the New York club, gives his mode of de- 
stroying lice on cattle. He says: " I destroy them Avith brine — any kind of 
salt water Avill do it. I find two kinds of lice; the blue lice, and I think the 
other is hen lice. I tried red precipitate one year; it killed the lice, two 
yearlings, and a two-year old. But washing the cattle with brine is easier, 
•nd they get into the habit of licking one another, and are more gentle 
toward each other. 

Another writer recommends grease. He says: " Insects breathe by 
means of small pores on their sides. Grease or oil that comes in contact 
Avith the insects closes the pores and stops the breathing. Mercurial oint- 
ment kills as much by the lard in it as by the mercury—that is, so far as the 



104 



THE PAliM. 



vermin are concerned, but not as to the animals that lick it off from theii' 
bodies, so that almost any oily or greasy application will be destructive t® 
insect vermin that infest animals if it is applied where it will do the most 
good." 

Still another authority says: " A good remedy for lice on cattle is water 
in which potatoes were boiled. For every one of your cattle take two quarts 
of water and eight middle-sized potatoes cut in half. If you have terucattle, 
you must take eighty potatoes and twenty quarts of water. When the 
potatoes are soft take them out. Get a large sponge and wash the cattle 
freely, choosing a warm day. Comb them with a currycomb, and you will 
be astonished to see the effects of the potato water." 

Cheap Shelter for Stock—Shelter for stock is one of the great needs 
of farmers. It is costly to build a barn and shed, but for simple purposes of 
shelter farmers might make greater use of their abundance of straw. In 
some localities it is customary to burn this as the readiest means to get it 
out of the way. A much better use might be made of it in constructing 
shelter for all kinds of stock, both against rain and cold. A very good plan 
is to make a frame of poles (as the engraving represents), and stack straw 
over them. This work should be done at threshing time, but if it has been 

neglected it may be done 
at any later time. It pays 
richly in health, thrift, and 
in the saving of food, to 
provide shelter. 

The Soiling System 
with Cows—It 18 a ques- 
tion of economy as to 
whether it is wise in us to 
allow the herd the full oc- 
cupancy of a pasture, in 
order to reap the products 
in the shape of butter and 
milk. A large herd re- 
quires a large pasture, and before any estimate can be made in the way of 
profit and loss, the value of the pasture itself, and the probability of what it 
may yield if cultivated, should be considered. 

The soiling system, which demands that the cattle shall be fed at the 
barn instead of pasturing in the field, has many advocates, and the reasons 
in its favor are that fewer fences are required, more manure is saved, larger 
yields of milk and butter are procured, and less space is required. Those 
who oppose the method say that it requires extra labor, and that the health 
of the stock is improved by their having the liberty of the pasture. 

Every consideration should be made, however, regarding the conditions. 
If the stock is kept on farms that are too large for cultivation, and where 
space is no object, with an unlimited supply of grass that cannot be utilized 
except by being pastured, then the soiUng system is not economical, for no 
necessity arises for its practice; but on small dairy farms, where land is 
valuable and the products within easy reach of the best markets, the system 
of stall feeding of cattle is one that should be carried to an extreme, for the 
result will be very profitable, any other method being suicidal in the 
extreme. The extra labor required is equalized by the saving in fences, and 




CHEAP SHELTER FOR STOCK. 



L] VE tiTOCK. 165 

the care and management is balanced by the savings of the liquid and solid 
manure. Both systems, therefore, are profitable under certain circum- 
stances, the whole matter being regulated by soil, chmate, capacity for pro- 
duction, and distance from market. 

Raising Calves. — A stock grower writes: As a general rule, I let the 
calf suck the cow for three days, then I take it away; and after it has been 
twelve hours without food, I give it some new milk — about ten pounds, if I 
can get him to eat it. If, while the calf is running with the cow, you can 
handle it a little, so as to make it tame, it will learn to eat much easier. 1 
am a large, stout man, and can easily hold a calf. If the calf is tame, so 
that it will come up to you and suck your hand, you can get it to eat the first 
time without much trouble; but if it is not tame, I get a-straddle of the calf, 
back him up in a corner, hold the pail between my knees, put one finger in 
the calf's mouth, and with the other hand hold the calf's head in the pail, 
and keep doing so until the calf commences to suck. Sometimes he will 
begin right off, and others will refuse for maybe ten minutes; but I never 
had one but what Avould suck after a while. By the third time I feed him I 
commence to take my finger out of his mouth, and do so more and more 
until he drinks without having a finger to suck. I feed entirely on new milk 
for ten days, then give about half new and half twelve-hours-old skimmed 
milk (using the cream I take off the milk on the table); then, after another 
ten days, I drop the new milk, having done so by degrees, and feed half 
twelve-hours-old skimmed milk and half skimmed milk, I work it so for a 
little while; but soon give him all skimmed milk, giving about eleven or 
twelve pounds at a feeding, and feed twice a day, without any meal or bran. 
I give in winter all the hay they Avant, keeping some before them all the 
time. After a calf is three months old you can give it some meal or shorts, 
if you wish; but I do not think it is best if it can have plenty of milk. I feed 
calves until about five months old, and then commence to wean them by 
degrees. If calves scour while they are being fed milk, I give them about 
two teaspoonfuls of salt. In the summer I feed them their milk cold, and 
it is generally thick, sour milk. In the Avinter I warm it a little, about milk- 
warm or blood-heat. It is well to handle your calves some while they are 
eating, so as to make them tame, and that is one advantage of raising them 
by hand, for they are generally tame. 

Charcoal for Sick Animals—In nine cases out of ten, when an animal 
is sick the digestion is wrong. Charcoal is the most efficient and rapid cor- 
rective. The hired man came in with the intelligence that one of the finest 
cows was very sick, and a kind neighbor proposed the usual drugs and 
poisons. The owner being ill and unable to examine the cow, concluded 
that the trouble came from over-eating, and ordered a teaspoonful of pul- 
verized charcoal to be given in water. It was mixed, placed in a junk 
bottle, the head turned downward. In five minutes improvement was 
visible, and in a few hours the animal was in the pasture quietly grazing. 
Another instance of equal success occurred with a young heifer which had 
become badly bloated by eating green apples after a hard wind. The bloat 
was so severe that the sides Avere as hard as a barrel. The old remedy, 
saleratus, was tried for correcting the acidity. But the attempts at putting it 
doAVTi always raised coughing, and it did Httle good. Half a teaspoonful of 
fresh powdered charcoal was given. In six hours all the appearance of the 
bloat had gone, and the heifer was well. 



166 



THE FABM. 



How to Break a Heifer or a Vicious Cow to Milk. A vicious COW 

becomes so only by educatiou, or, as it is sometimes said, by being spoiled. 
The case is much worse than that of a heifer, and when the cow is appar- 
enth^ cured of a bad habit, it is liable iipon slight provocation to return. 
The principle involved in the treatment of all brutes is to employ kindness 
together with the means of proper restraint. In the case of the young or the 

vicious cow, place her in stanchions or fasten her securely. Pass a girth 

either a strap or a rope— around the body, just in front of the bag, letting 
it pass in the rear of the right hip and in front of the left. Draw the girth 
somewhat tightly— more or less so, to cori'espond with the severity of the 
case. Take pail and stool, and sit down to the milking. The case must be 
a very obstinate one which Avill give any lasting trouble. The philosophy of 
the treatment is that the sti-ap so restrains the actions of the muscles of the 
hind legs that the animal cannot kick to harm, or get its foot into the pail, 
while the restraimt is steady and sure and the punishment not severe. A 
woman or boy can manage an ordinary case. Heifers broken in this way, we 

think, become more thor- 
oughly gentle and sub- 
missive. Of course an 
even temper and kind 
treatment must be strict- 
ly observed. 

Feed Rack for 

Stock—The rack rep- 
resented in this engrav- 
ing is designed to be 
placed against a building 
or wall, under cover. It 
may be adapted to any 
kind of stock by placing 
it at the pi'oper height. 
The cut plainly explains 

its construction. The trough below the slats may be used for feeding grain 

or roots. This style of rack is very popular in Europe. 

Science Applied to Stock-Feeding. — It is often necessary to mix differ- 
ent kinds of food to secure the best combination of flesh and fat-producing 
elements. Experiments have been made in Germany to ascertain what-is^^ 
the proper combination of these principles. Ordinary food contains two 
leading elements, one of which supplies the flesh and muscle of the animal 
frame, and the other the fat and heat. These two elements should bear a 
certain relation to each other. In the combination producing the best re- 
sults, the ratio is one of the muscle-producing to three or four of the fat- 
producing. Our common crop contains these elements in very different ra- 
tios. In corn-fodder it is 1 to 10, Avhich is too small proportion of the muscle- 
producing element in proportion to the fat-producing. In wheat straw, they 
are 1 to 15; in oat straw, they are 1 to 16; in German millet, they are 1 to 3, 
80 that this, when cut in the dough state, possesses the proper combination. 
In corn (grain) they are 1 to 7 or 8, too much of the fat for the muscle-pro- 
ducing elements. This corresponds to our experience. Corn is too heating 
for work stock in our climate in summer. It is, however, excellent for fat- 
tening animals. In oats (grain) these elements are 1 to 5, nearer eoi-rect 




FEED HACK FOR STOCK. 



LIVE STOCK. 1(57 

than in corn. In wheat bran, 2 to 8 1-2; in rye, 1 to 6. European field bean 
has 1 to 1.8 (one and eight-tenths), showing too much muscle-producing 
for the fat-producing elements. The proper medium may be attained by 
mixing two kinds of food. Thus corn and peas mixed make the ratio about 
correct. Clover hay is 1 to 3; lucerne, 1 to 2; vetch, 1 to a little more than 2. 

How Practical Farmers Manage tlieir Cattle. A well-knoAvn firm 

of practical farmers give the following information of the method pursued by 
them: "Unless the weather is stormy, we turn our breeding bulls out for 
exercise half of every day, often with the cows in the pasture, when none of 
them are in heat. After breeding our cows we keep them in a stable, where 
they cannot be with the other cows for from ten to fifteen hours. We have 
a few stalls that are specially designed for cows that are due to calve during 
cold weather, and, of course, these are made as warm as we can get them. 
We turn the cows out with their calves three times each day, until the calves 
are six to eight weeks old, then only twice a day. We rarely allow calves to 
run with dam in pasture, though we put the calves out to grass as soon as 
they have learned to eat it. Feed young calves well on shelled corn, oats 
and meal. Have separate pastures for bulls and heifer calves and do not 
allow them to pasture together after the bulls are three or four months old. 
Our dry cows we winter principally on hay, feed- 
ing very little grain, except to young stock and 
those that have calves at their sides, or those de- 
signed for the show-ring. We breed our heifers 
when about twenty months old." 




CAJLF WEANER. 



Calf Weaner. — This invention relates to the 
class of calf weaners adapted to be attached to 
the central cartilage of the calfs nose, like a 
bull ring, the parts of the weaner being pro- 
vided Avith sharp points that come against the 
cow's bag when the calf attempts to suck. The 
parts or sections of the device are attached together by a pivot forming a 
part of one of the points. They are held closed by means of a small screw. 
This device is very effective, simple and cheap. 

Training Horns. — If it is desirable to straighten a horn, you may fre- 
quently scrape with a piece of glass, or a knife, the hollow side, which will 
cause it to grow faster on that side; but in that case it must not be scraped 
deeply, for then it becomes weaker on that side, and will be turned toward 
the weaker side. Some scrape the side toward which they wish to turn the 
horn quite thin, and then scrape the opposite side just enough to make it 
gi'ow faster, and that will turn it toward the thinly scraped side. If you 
wish to turn a horn up, scrape on the under side just enough to make it 
grow faster on that side. A very barbarous Avay to turn a horn is sometimes 
practiced, by searing with a hot iron on that side toward which the horn is to 
be turned. This prevents the growth of horn on that side, and the growth 
upon the other side turns the horn. The horns may be polished by rubbing 
them with fine sand paper, and then with pumice-stone, and then oiling 
them. But this artificial manipulation of horns is seldom necessary. The 
horns of well-fed cattle will generally grow in comely shape if let alone. 

The hair is sometimes oiled to give it a glossy appearance, but the best 
gloss is put upon the hair by rich and appropriate feeding. Nature, under 
proper conditions, does this work best, 



168 THE FARM. 

HoUo-w Horn. — The first symptoms of the disease are readily seen. The 
animal affected refuses to eat, and shows an indisposition to move about. If 
not properly treated at once, the disease soon becomes so severe as to pre- 
vent the animal from feeding at all, and death is generally the result. The 
old plan of boring the horns and pouring in turpentine should never be re- 
sorted to, as it does no good, and gives the animal unnecessary pain. The 
horns are not effected, and consequently need no doctoring. The tongue is 
the member wherein lies the trouble. By securing the animal's head, so as 
to prevent injury to yourself from its horns, and then pulhng out the tongue 
a,nd pressing it downward, over the iinder lip, hundreds of little Mack heads 
of so-called tiesh- worms will rise above the surface. Take a dull table knife 
and scrape oft' these black heads carefully and gently; then throw on the 
longue a little salt or pepper, or both mixed together, which mil bring up 
the saliva and set the animal's tongue to working. In a few hours at most 
the animal will begin to eat, and the trouble will be ended. We have never 
known this remedy to fail, no matter how severe the case. 

Taste of Turnips in Milk—There are several remedies, says the 
American Agriculturist, to prevent the taste of turnips in milk, but we be- 
lieve no one of them can be strictly relied upon as effectual; we will, how- 
ever, give them in order: 

1. The objectionable taste comes from the crown of the turnip. If this is 
cut off and thrown away entire, the remainder will not affect the milk. 2. Dis- 
solve a teaspoonful of carbonate of soda in a teacupful of wai*m water, and 
add this to six gallons of milk when first set in the pans. For a single gallon, 
of course one-sixth of the above would he sufficient, and for two or three 
gallons in due proportion. The turnips ought to be given to the cow imme- 
diately after milking. 3. Pulp or crush the turnips so fine as to make them 
quickly and easily digested after eating, and when fed mix with cut hay or 
straw. 4. Scald the milk as soon as drawn from the cows. The best way 
to do this is to insert the milk can into a large pan or kettle about three- 
quarters full of boiling water, and stir the milk until it reaches 80 to 90 de- 
gi-ees of heat, and then set it away to gradually cool off. The cream then 
rises thick, comes off in a lump, and is churned quickly. All the above 
remedies are so simple as to be easily tried, and if they do no good, cannot 
effect harm. 

lieaves for Bedding. — An economical farmer writes: " In the scarcity 
of rye straw, and the absence of saw-dust and other material for bedding 
cattle, we have been forced to use forest leaves to keep the horse and cow 
in cleanly condition, and on the whole are much pleased with them. The 
gathering was from the roadside, and along the walls, where brush and 
leaves had accumulated for years. A few basketfuls were put under the 
animals every morning, and kept there until they were well satui-ated with 
the xirine, and then throAvn out into the manure heap. With a plenty of this 
material, kept dry under a shed, and used abundantly, there is very little 
loss of liquid manure. As an absorbent, it is much more effective than we 
expected to find it. Leaves have a high reputation as a material for the hot- 
bed and the compost heap, and are worth the labor of gathering, in most 
cases for their fertilizing properties. Cords of them are going to decay in the 
sight of almost every rural home, and it is the rare exception that they are 
utilized. Meanwhile the fields and garden are famished for want of manure, 
or supplied with concentrated fertilizers at forty dollars a ton, 



LIVE STOCK. 189 

The First Milk. — The custom of weaning the ealf from the oow when 
it is only three days old is a barbarous one. We are familiar with the fact 
that cows ai'e sometimes injured by such a course, also, especially if she is 
naturally of a nervous, anxious disposition, she soon learning the habit of 
holding up her milk, and when a cow holds up her milk she has become 
addicted to the most incurable vice known. There is another thing con- 
nected with the weaning of the calf at so early an age, Avhich is the plain 
statement that we make in claiming that the milk is unfit for use, although 
the calf is usually taken away in order that the milk may be sold. Those 
who have had experience in the dairy know that milk from cows that have 
recently come in is ropy, and possesses a distinct characteristic in appear- 
ance from that of cows that have been in service for a longer time. Thus, it 
is not only unnatural to deprive the cow of her calf so early, but to use the 
milk. It also pays to keep the calf on the milk until it is old enough to be 
sold at a fail- price. 

Obstructed Teats. — The more the udder is stimulated to extra secretion 
of milk, so much the more is it liable to congestion and inflammation. The 
pressure, too, of a great quantity of milk in the udder upon the circular 
muscle (sphincter), which closes the end of the teat, tends to set up more or 
less irritation there, and this will sometimes result in excessive thickening 
of the walls and hard milking, or oven complete closure of the orifice. The 
simplest and best te-eatment is to slightly dilate the opening of the teat, once 
or twice a day, with a perfectly smooth probe. A silver milking tube, about 
a twelfth of an inch in diameter, will answer; or, when this is not available, 
a probe of the same size made of gutta percha. A small size will be neces- 
sary at first, and, after a day or two, when that passes easily, a larger one, 
until finally the orifice is easily dilatable and the milking sufificiently free. In 
every case the probe should be well oiled, and introduced with caution, so 
as to avoid injury to the internal parts. A silver tube should be warmed 
before it is introduced. 

To Test the Healtli of a Horse or Cow. — In horses the pulse at rest 
beats forty times, in an ox from fifty to fifty-five, and in sheep and pigs about 
seventy to eighty beats per minute. It may be felt wherever a big art-ery 
crosses a bone. For instance, it is generally examined in the horse on the 
cord which crosses over the bone of the lower jaw in front of its curved posi- 
tion, or in the bony ridge above the eye, and in cattle over the middle of the 
first rib, and in sheep by placing the hand on the left side, where the beating 
of the heart may be felt. Any material variations of the pulse from the 
figures given above may be considered as a sign of disease. If rapid, hard 
and full, it is an indication of high fever or inflammation; if rapid, small and 
weak, low fever, loss of blood or weakness. If slow, the possibilities point 
to brain disease, and if irregular, to heart troubles. This is one of the princi- 
pal and sure tests of the health of an animal. 

Blacflc Lieg.—Black leg in young cattle generally attacks calves in the 
fall when they get the rank growth of feed and are subject to sudden 
changes of weather from rains and frosts. It sometimes attacks thrifty 
calves in the winter when they are in the house and eating dry feed. We 
believe the herdsman can trace the disease back to the cause, and we believe 
the cause is the same in winter as in fall and spring; that is, rapid growth 
from generous feed and liability to sudden chills from being kept in too 
warm houses and exposures to cold while out during the day. Stables 



J 70 THE FABM. 

should not be too warm, nor should calves be deprived of exercise. Salt- 
petre in salt is iised by experienced herdsmen as a preventive; bleeding mil 
prevent the disease spreading among calves; for, although it is not con- 
tagious, the cause that produces it in one is apt to produce it in others. 

Treatment of Horn Brittleiiess. — In treating cows for horn brittle- 
ness, a stock raiser in Austria found no good resulting from feeding bone 
meal when the water used from a spring was perfectly soiii: — that is, Avithout 
mineral matter. But upon changing them to the water of another spring 
containing carbonate, sulphate and phosphate of lime, and chlorate of mag- 
nesia in small quantities, the effects were as follows: 1. The animals drank 
half as much agam as before. 2. The cows gave more and better milk than 
before. 3. The worst diseased cows at once began to get better, and this 
was the first case in which any of them recovered without removal. 4. The 
oxen showed far better condition than could be previously attained on the 
best of food and with the most careful attention. No fresh cases occurred as 
soon as the change of water was introduced. 

Sores on Cattle—There are many sores on cattle, which if kept con- 
stantly washed clean with cold water and kept free from dirt, would heal of 
themselves. A very careful herdsman says his practice of curing hoof-rot is 
to thoroughly cleanse the affected parts with wai'ui water and soap; and then 
apply warm tar between the hoofs. In very bad cases there will be a large 
core to come out; remove it carefully with the thumb and finger, cleanse the 
cavity as above with soap and water, and then fill it with warm tar. Keep 
the parts thoroughly covered with tar, even if it is necessary to use a band- 
age. Keep the animal in a clean, dry pasture. It is no more liable to affect 
the whole system than any other ulcer. When once cured there is no danger 
of its appearing again unless from the same catise. 

Ho-w to Milk a Co^v. — The most economical way to milk a cow, all 
things considered, is to milk the* two fore teats clean, leaving off with a 
pretty full stream, and then milk the hind ones down to a short 
stream, and, returning to the fore ones, milk them to the same 
condition, not touching the hind ones again. This will leave the teats 
empty, and the bag, too. It is a false notion that tiigging away at the teats 
stimulates a cow to give more milk; but, on the contrary, emptying the bag 
as soon as possible yields more; then the cow can have the extra time to eat, 
which is a better stimulus than either. A slow milker is never tolerated in 
the dairy districts, and a " stripper" is an injury anywhere. The sooner a 
cow is milked, and all the organs connected with feeding, digestion, and 
secretion are left in their natural condition, the better it is for the cow. 

Caked Udder. — ^When a cow's milk suddenly dries up and becomes 
clotted in the udder, it is probably due to garget or inflammation of the 
iidder from some one of many causes. The udder is then hard or lumpy, 
and hot. A remedy is to give the cow at once eight or twelve ounces of 
Epsom salts, with half an ounce of saltpetre, repeating the latter in six 
hours. If the milk is difticult to draw, a solution of one ounce of carbonate 
of soda in a pint of water should be injected in the teats Avith a syringe, and 
then milked out. This will bring away the curded milk which, if left in, will 
make matters very much worae. If the coav is feverish, the saltpetre may 
be repeated for a day or two. To bathe the udder in cold water, rubbing 
and squeezing it gently for a considerable time, is useful, 



LI V K STlKJK, 171 

Another remedy is to wash and rub thoroughly with water as hot as you 
can bear your hand. Then rub with a dry cloth. Then apply hog's lard, or 
what is better, grate good yellow carrot line and simmer it in the lard t(t an 
ointment and apply and nib as above. 

Cows AVijiter Tlieiiiselves. — Many farmers are accustomed to dry oft' 
their cows early, milking them only about eight months. We think it im- 
proves the milking qualities of the cows to milk them ten months, but they 
should be well fed. We have a neighbor, who, ten years ago, found himself 
short of hay in the fall, and lamented that he should have to pay out nearly 
all of the product of his cows through the summer to purchase hay at high 
prices to winter them. He had a moderate amount of straw, and we sug- 
gested that the product of his cows from the first day of December, if well 
fed, Avould pay for all the corn and meal, middlings, etc., necessary to 
mnter his cows in fine condition. He tried this, keeping account of pur- 
chases of feed and sales of butter, and found that the butter came out ten 
dollai-s ahead in the spring. 

Cornstalks foi- Cattle. — A Maine farmer says: Farmers justly set a high 
value on well cured corn stalks, but some find a difficulty in getting their 
stock to eat them as cleanly as they wish. I have overcome tliis difiiculty 
this winter by sprinkling them with hot brine. I withheld dry salt from the 
stock a while, also husks, and made a brine by putting salt into a watering 
pot and pouring on hot water; gave the husks a bountiful sprinkling and 
fed them the last thing at night, instead of feeding them in the morning, as 
formerly. I think if I had tried this plan years ago I should have saved a 
great amount of fodder that was thrown out and trodden under foot. 

Foul Foot in a Cow. — Cows and horses are subject to a disease of the 
feet similar to scratches in horses. Diseased granulations, similar in ap- 
pearance to the heart of a cauliflower, break out and excrete a thin acrid 
matter. The treatment should be, to dress the diseased part with caustics, 
such as powdered sulphate of copper (blue vitriol) or sulphate of zinc 
(white vitriol), rubbed up smoothly, with clean, sweeh lard, and give the 
animal repeated doses of one ounce hyposulphite of soda, as an alterative. 
The soda should be given every other day for a week or ten days. 

Kicking Co^ivs. — A writer says he once had a very valuable heifer 
Avhich was an exceedingly vicious kicker. To cure her of the habit, he put a 
common garden hoe end in front of her off hind leg, and behind and above 
the gambrel joint of the nigh hind leg. Then sitting down on the right to 
milk, he put the handle cf the hoe well up under his arm and began milk- 
ing. The heifer could not stir either hind leg, and after one week she could 
bo milked safely without fettering, and proved to be a valuable and gentle 
animal. 

"Vl'"arm Water for Cows.—Warm water is an excellent thing for cows 
giving milk; it is as good as two or three quarts of meal a day; but if you 
mix meal and shorts Avith it cows must be allowanced, as they will drink too 
much — enough to diminish the flow of milk. The quantity will vary with 
the character of feed and the cow. A little good judgment is a nice thing 
here, as everywhere else. 

Roots for Stock — The value of roots for stock is not appreciated to the 
extent that it should be. In the rotation of crops in England turnips rank 



172 THE FARM. 

high, and it is not uncommou for a farmer to devote from twenty to fifty acres 
to this crop. Cattle are kept there in line condition in -sA^nter on raw turnips, 
and the latter also make excellent food for sheep. On rich land the crop 
produces very largely, and a comparatively small space is sufficient for or- 
dinary wants. 

Jumping Cattle. — To stop a cow or steer fi'om jumping over fences nail 
a horseshoe on one forward foot. This prevents the hoof fi-om spreading, 
and consequently renders the animal unable to spring. This is calculated 
to be very effectual. 

Mixing Hay for Stock. — A mixture of one-third clover hay with timothy 
and redtop is recommended for any kind of stock. This mixture, it is said, 
will produce more milk, more growth, and more fat in stock than clear timo- 
thy and redtop. 

Proportions of Pood. — A milch cow, on the average, requires daily three 
per cent, of her weight in hay to keep her in health, an ox two per cent., or 
two and a half per cent, if working moderately. An ox fatting, five per cent, 
at first, and four and a half per cent, when half fat; sheep three and a half 
per cent, to keep in stm-e order. If other food is substituted for hay, or a 
part of it, its comparative value as a nutriment must bo ascertained. Thus, 
eight pounds of potatoes are equal to fpur pounds of good hay, while 
eight pounds of turnips are only equal to one and three-fifths pounds of 
hay. 

Carrots for Stock. — It is asserted, by those who have tested the matter, 
that for stock-feeding an acre of carrots is worth about two htindred per 
cent, more than the same ground will do in grass. This will pay for increased 
expense of cultivation, and leave a fair margin of extra profit. Cattle take 
readily to carrots as a portion of their daily food, and the large yield per 
acre should make them a greater favorite with farmers than they generally 
are. The thinning and weeding appear to be a great drawback to their more 
general cultivation. But with this expense the crop pays well. 

Celery Tops for Co-*%'s. — A writer in an Australian paper states that in 
many instances the leaves of celery are highly esteemed as food for milch 
cows, and are often preierred to red uiovcr. The cows are said to eat them 
greedily, and to j-ield on this food a far richer milk than on any other. Some- 
times leaves are cut up small, scalded with hot Avater, and given as a mash 
mixed with bran, and sometimes they are fed whole in their natural state 
along with the other t)rdiuary food 

TUe Best Feed for Cattle. — "We have seen pumpkins fed quite freely 
with excellent result in quantity and quality of milk; but it is not fit or eco- 
nomical to feed too largely of any one food. Potatoes fed in moderation are 
excellent for milk; but giv«n in too great a quantity they will reduce the 
yield. Turnips or beets must not be given too liberally; corn fodder, given 
as a sole ration, is unprofitable; but fed with half pasture will keep up the 
yield of milk and add largely to the profit of the season. 

Pliospliate:^ for Cattle. — A natural instinct leads cattle to eat bones 
when their pastures are deficient in lime or phosphates of lime. If these 
bones are brought home and reduced to a fine powder, mixed with salt, and 
placed in a box or boxes fixed in the barn-yard, the cows ^vill lick them and 



LIVE STOCK. 173 

derive very great benefit from them. This will save their teeth, and prevent 
them from choking themselves, as they might readily do with a piece of bone. 
Those who have no old bones should purchase a few, and treat them in the 
way indicated. 

Straw and Bran. — Professor Henry, of the Wisooyisin Experimental 
Farm, holds that it is wise economy on the part of the farmer who has a 
great straw stack, and small herd of cattle, and some hay, and who will not 
enlarge his herd, to sell the hay at $7 or $8 per ton, and spend the money in 
buying bran at $11 and $12, and feed it with the straw, together with some oil- 
meal. Good bright straw is made equal to hay by the addition of the protein 
in the bran and meal, and the whole is thus made into a far better quality of 
manure than usually comes from the usual way of feeding the hay, and half 
washing the straw. 

Feeding Bran "witli Meal. — For winti^' feeding, where cattle are kept 
in stalls and heavily fed, there is no better divisor for corn meal than wheat 
bran. It is also cheap, and funiishes what the corn meal lacks. When cat- 
tle are fed on corn meal as the principal food for fattening, it is apt to clog 
if fed in too large quantities; hence, our best feeders are in the habit of using 
bran as the cheapest and best means for rendering the meal fed more di- 
gestible. 

Rings on Covins' Horm^. — The first ring appears when the bovine is two 
years of age, and sometimes before. The ring gradually increases during 
the third year, and is fully formed at three years; the second ring appears 
during the fourth year, and is complete at the end of the fifth year; after 
that one additional ring is formed each year. A cow with three rings is six 
years old; with four, seven yeai-s old. After nine or ten years the rings are 
no indication ©f the age. 

Care of Oxen. — Oxen that work on frozen roads, although there is no ice, 
should be shod. The rough, hard surface wears down the hoofs very fast, 
and causes inflammation of the interior; the trouble may not become appar- 
ent until later, when the mischief is difiicult to repair. If the feet are tender 
and hot, and a slight lameness is perceived, examine the hoofs between the 
ciaws, cleanse the feet, and apply the needful remedies without delay, and 
so save trouble in the tuture. 

To Kxtei'minate Rats and Mice. — An English agricultural paper says: 
" Several correspondents write to announce the complete extirpation of rats 
and mice from their cow-stalls and piggeries since the adoption of this sim- 
ple plan: A mixture of two parts of well-bruised common squills and three 
parts of finely chopped bacon is made into a stiff mass, with as much meal as 
may be required, and then baked into small cakes, which are put down for 
the rats to eat." 

target in Co-*vs. -It is said that eight drops of tincture of aconite dropped 
on a piece of bread and mixed with the food at night, and next morning fom- 
drops more given in the same manner, will generally complete the cure of 
garget in cows. 

Scours in Calves. — For scours in calves, a raw egg broken into their 
milk is the most effectual remedy. A j^iece of rennet soaked in milk is also 
good, but we prefer the raw egg. 



17-1 



THE FAtiM. 



A Winter Piggery. — The object sought in the erection of this piggery 
is to secure a neat, clean, cheap and comfortable shelter for young pigs. The 
structure is thirty feet long, six feet wide, live and a half feet high in front, 
and four feet high at the rear. The roof slopes only one way, and projects 
fifteen inches, to throw water away from the pens. First make the spot on 
which it is to be built a foot higher than the natu- 
ral surface, Avith stiff, good clay soil. Gravel 
must be put on this several inches deep. Set 
round white oak posts a few inches in the ground 
at every corner of each pen or division. Nail on, 
with double-ten nails, scantling, two by four 
inches. Board up with vertical boarding, one l)y 
twelve inches. Cover the roof of building with 
the same mateiial, and make slatted divisions for 
the pens inside. Our illustration shows the trough 
into which slops and water are poui-ed from the 
outside. These have a one-inch hole at one end, 
with peg to let off surpliTs water in cleaning. A 
piggery of this size will hold from ten to thirty, 
according to size and age. It should be built 
facing tho south, so as to allow as much sunshine 
as possible to enter the doors. Whitewash flie 
g" inner apartments for health; also the outside, 
g which gives the structure a pleasant appearance. 
o The ornamental verge board is sawed out of one- 
^ inch plank a foot wide, and a one-inch auger hole 
y put through the center of the figure, as shown in 
^ the cut. The rafters project a foot over the front, 
^ which proves a solid basis upon which to nail the 
^ verge board. A little Venetian red in some lime 
is good to color the verge board, the corners and 
doors. The doors are made of open slat-work, 
and are furnished with small chains for fastening, 
and strap hinges. This piggery can be built for 
about $35. 



AVill it Pay to Steam Fodder! —Taking the 
word fodder in its broadest sense, says the Ameri- 
can Agriculturist, as any kind of food for gra- 
nivorous animals, Ave may say that it Avill always 
pay to steam or cook feed for SAvine, and often for 
cows, in stables containing twenty-five head or 
more, Avhile for 'sheep and horses it Avill be of 
doubtful expediency, and usually not advisable 
under any circumstances. The cooking of feed 
for fattening SAvine is so important as a matter of 
economy, that it Avill pay, even though done with 
little regard to the saving of labor and fuel. On the other hand, to cook the 
feed for neat cattle Avith profit, not only should there be animals enough to 
make it pay^ but the rations should be so carefully planned, that by min- 
gling of palatable, with less relished and coarse fodder, a saving may be ef- 
fected in that way. Besides the object for which the cattle are kept, is an 
important factor to be considered in the feeding. 



LIVE STOCK. 



175 



The flow of milk is increased by steaming the fodder— the color of the 
butter is, however, injured. The same ration will prove more fattening, 
while, at the same time, there will be little or no waste, if the steam is well 
managed. It is best to have the steamed ration composed of a variety of 
feed, such as com-fodder roots, hay or oat straw, with bran and corn meal, 
or cotton-seed, or linseed-cake, or meal. The substitution of one kind of 
fodder or meal for another, gives variety and relish. The coarse fodder is 
cooked soft, and the flavor of the roots and of the meal pervades the mass. 
It is not likely that any of the small agricultural steamers can be made to 
economically cook the food for as many as twenty-five or thirty head of cattle. 
When a boiler of several horse-power is employed to do other work, as 
pumping, thrashing, sawing wood, grinding, cutting hay and com fodder, 
etc., steam may be economically used for cooking fodder; Of this there can 
be little doubt. The steam box in which the fodder is placed for cooking, if 
it is big enough, need not be filled oftener than twice a week, and if, as already 
intimated, eveiy pains is taken in the operation to save in the items of labor 
and fuel, steaming fodder 
for cattle will be found 
profitable. 

Convenient Trongli. — 

This trough is designed 
more especially for an out- 
door or field trough for sum- 
mer and fall use. It is very 
desirable with many to feed 
their swine outside of pens 
in those seasons, and every 
farmer is aware that it is 
almost a necessity to have 
the trough arranged to keep 
the swine away, both *from 
the person who feeds them 
and from the receptacle into 
which their food is placed while the latter is being prepared. The trough 
which we illustrate is adapted very perfectly to this purpose. It may form 
part of the fence, so that the swine cannot come to the rear, from which side 
the food is placed in it, and the additional advantage is the shelter of both 
trough and animals from storms. 

The cut requires little explanation. The cover is hung on pins and 
fastened by a hook and staple on the rear side to keep it down. When food 
is to be placed in the trough the hook is unfastened and the cover Ufted up 
in the position shown by the dotted lines. By this movement the swine are 
completely shut away, and it is very convenient to place and mix their food. 
A slight effort brings the cover back to its place, and they can then " go in." 
Perhaps sheep feeders might take a useful hint fi'om this plan. 

Pig Raising. — We will suppose that the farmer has a litter of good, 
healthy pigs of good stock, one day old. He congratulates himself that, 
having escaped the dangers which are so thick at the critical period of far- 
rowing, he will have no further trouble. The pigs are lively, and well de- 
veloped; the mother shows no disposition to eat them, and is careful not to 
overlie them. There ai-e still two dangers right before the pig raiser 




CONVENIENT TROUGH. 



176 THE FARM. 

into which he may ignorantly run — but Avhich may be easily avoided — which 
have caused the death of pigs by the million. The first is overfeeding the 
sow with lich, heat-producing feed. I think there is no one cause that has 
occasioned so much loss as this. Make it an invariable rule to feed sparingly 
of corn for the first week. A failure to pay close attention to the matter of 
diet at this time will often result in fever, which dries iip the milk, the in- 
sufficiency of which actually starves the pigs to death. When the result is 
not so bad as this, the sow loses appetite, runs down rarijidly in flesh, and 
although the pigs live they do not thrive, and before weaning the mother is 
a skeleton. For the first week feed house slops and bran, with but one ear 
of corn at a feed, and then increase gradually, and by the end of the second 
Aveek you can feed as heavily as you please. The second danger to young 
pigs is that they become diseased for want of exercise. It the sow is kept in 
a close pen and proves to be a good suckler, it is often the case that in two 
or three weeks the pigs get so fat as to die. Many a farmer, with a valuable 
litter of pigs shut up in a close pen, has seen them die • one after the other 
until the litter disappeared, and yet he had no idea what was the matter. 
Lay it down, then, as a second rule in pig raising, that young pigs must have 
exercise. 

Still another important thing is a clean bed. If allowed to sleep in dust 
they are likely to die of thumps, and if in a wet place or a manure pile, they 
become mangy, or contract colds and die. But we will suppose that the 
farmer is wise enough to guard against the dangers I have spoken of, and 
has brought the litter safely to the age of four weeks, with the mother in 
good condition, and having a good appetite. It is now time to begin to pre- 
pare the pigs for Aveaning. Make a j^eu near where you feed the sow, 
and arrange it so that the pigs can go in and out at pleasure, but let it not 
be accessible to the sow, and begin feedmg with milk and soaked corn. The 
quantity must be very small at first, and only what they will eat clean. In- 
crease gradually, and by the time they are eight weeks old they will be eat- 
ing enough so that they can be weaned withoiit checking their growth. If, 
as is often the case, there are in the litter two or three pigs that are not quite 
up to the average, it will be good, both for them and the sows, to let them 
run with the mother a week or two longer than the remainder of the litter. 
For four months after weading feed liberally. No matter whether your pigs 
are to be kept for breeders, fattened the first fall, or wintered over to be 
pastured the next summer and fed the second autumn, the treatment should 
be the same. Do not aim to make them fat, but get all the development of 
bone and muscle you can. The food should not be com exclusively, for we 
want more of the flesh-formers, and they shoiild have the run of pasture, 
and be fed on bran slop with the corn. Exercise, a varied diet, with part 
bulky food and not too much corn, will give a profitable hog. 

Overfeeding Stock. — Overfeeding an animal is worse in its effects than 
a spare diet. A great many more young animals are checked in their 
growth, and otherwise injured, by overfeeding than by a deficiency of food. 
In illustration of this statement, a correspondent tells the following story of 
his own experience: 

A rather opinionated and willful hired man, who requires the closest 
watehing in feeding the stock, in defiance of strict orders, gave some Berk- 
shire pigs some cotton seed meal in their feed, in the expectation that it 
would help them to grow. Their feed had been skimmed milk, with a quart 
pf wheat middlings to the pailful. Considerable more cotton seed meal was 



LIVE STOCK. 



177 



added to the feed during my absence from home for a day and night, and on 
my return the next day two of the young pigs were talven with convulsions 
and severe spasms. They died the next day, when two more were taken, 
and soon after two more. The whole six died in the same way. First they 
slowly turned around and around, then stood with the head in a corner and 
pressed against the wall or yard fence; the jaws were chopped together, and 
they foamed at the mouth. After a few hours they lay upon their sides and 
struggled violently with the legs until they died. A dose of lard oil allayed 
the symptoms for a time, and had it been given at first, would probably have 
saved them. On opening them the lungs were found congested and very red 
in patches, and the brain, also, was much congested, the blood vessels being 
dark blue. The stomach and intestines were filled with cotton seed meal, 
ttv0 milk having been digested. So short a case of indigestion, or stomach 
staggers, as it is popularly called, is rare; but the pigs were but two months 
old, and had probably been misfed previously. 

A Convenient Feeding Trougli. — We give an illustration of a con- 
venient trough for feeding hogs or sheep. It is especially well designed for 
feeding hogs, and may be placed in the pen, the swing door above the 

trough forming one side. ffljlffl|ri| ___^ fl^|\ 

If desirable to use it out ^^ |l | ^ ^^__^ . ~=^=^'^^^ ~ -"""^ || e 

©f doors, it may form part mlilii i! \^^^i-!'k^ ^^^M^ _:- llil li'l i» 

of a fence. The construc- 
tion is simple. Two up- 
right board standards, 
about four feet high, are 
nailed to the ends of the 
trough to support a swing 
door or partition, which is 
adjusted so that the lower 
edge plays back and forth 
just over the top of the 
trough. The -sdew given is 
of the rear side of the 

trough, and the partition is swung forward to shut the animals away while 
their food is being prepared. When ready, the slide is withdrawn, the par- 
tition swings over the rear side, and the hogs can "go in." Slats of wood 
should be placed across the trough to keep the animals from standing in it. 
By swinging the partition high enough, the hogs may pass under. 

Sanitary Management of Swine. — One great fault in the manage- 
ment is to keep too many hogs together in one shed or inclosure. From 
want of proper protection in the way of housing, hogs are very apt to crowd 
together in bunches during cold weather; and, coming into the sheds wet 
and dirty, and being obhged to lie either on old and filthy straw bedding or 
on a wet and damp floor, +heir sweating and steaming soon produces a foul 
atmosphere, and the bedding, not being removed at proper intervals, gets 
rotten, and adds to contamination of the air. Being thus packed together in 
the building, the hogs, in a warm and perspiring condition, are next exposed 
to the influence of cold winds and wet, by being turned out in the morning 
hours to run in the fleld among grass wet Avith cold dew or from rain or 
hoar-frost, or to be fed from troughs in the yard. Among the common con- 
sequences are congestion, cold or catarrh, and, if the so-called hog cholera 




A CONVENIENT FEEDING TROUGH. 



178 



"ritE FARM, 



happens to be prevailing, they are almost certain to be affected with that 
disease, as theh' systems, under such management, are rendered predisposed 
or susceptible thereto. In many places the hogs are kept in miserable sheds", 
no provision being made for proper drainage, the ground sloping toward the 
sheds, which frequently being unpaved, or without proper tiooring, are con- 
stantly damp and Avet, while pools of urine and filth abound, and with wind 
and sleet approaching from all quarters. In proportion as the standard of 
breeding has become higher, so has the vital force, energy, and hardiness 
become lessened; and the effects of improper quantity and quality of food, 
filthy or stagnant water, faulty construction of houses, and undue exposure 
to atmospheric influences, have become proportionately more baneful. 

A Crood Pig Sty. — We furnish herewith a plan for a good pig sty, with a 
detailed description showing the best manner of constructing the same. Our 
illustration represents the ground floor, 25 feet wide by 32 feet long. A is an 
entry five feet wide, running.the whole length of the building, Avith a door 
at each end; it is used for feeding, as the troughs in boxes b, b, b, b, run 
along one aide of it. The roof extends only over the entry (a) and the boxes 

b, b, b, b. The boxes c, 

c, c, c, are not under the 
roof. The whole building 
is floored with plank, with 
a shght'depressionin grade 
toward the front of about 
half an inch to the foot, for 
the purpose of drainage. 
The inside partitions need 
not be more than about 
four feet high. The small 
door between b and c is 
hung by hinges from the 
top, so as to open either 
way, made to work easy, 

not reaching quite to the floor. The pig soon learns to push it open and 
pass through, and the door closes after it. When pigs are put into the 
boxes, one corner of the box floor (c) should be made tcei, and the pigs will 
be careful not to wet anywhere else. 0, o, o, o, are feeding troughs. The 
height of the building should be seven or eight feet. No bedding is required. 
Keep the floor clean. 

Hog Cholera. —The Lewistown (?a2;e^fe, published in Fulton County, 111., 
says: "Every paper in the United States ought occasionally to keep the fact 
before its readers that burnt corn is a certain and speedy cure for hog chol- 
era. The best way is to make a pile of corn on the cobs, effectually scorch 
it, and then give the affected hogs free access to it. This remedy was dis- 
covered by E. E. Lock at the time his distillery in this county was burned, 
together -with a large lot of store corn, which was so much injured as to be 
unfit for use, and was hauled out and greedily eaten by the hogs, several of 
Avhich were dying daily. After the second day not a single hog was lost, 
and the disease was entirely conquered. The remedy has been tried in a 
number of cases since, and never failed." 

The Washington (Iowa) (razette says Mr. Donahey, of that place, furnishes 
the following recipe for the cure of hog cholera: To prevent hogs fi-om hav- 



c 


c 


c 


c 


I 


"b 


h 


h 


o 






o 


• \ 



A OOOD PIO STY. 



LIVE STOCK. 179 

iug cholera, quinsy, or pueumonia, use one gallon of soft soap, four ounces of 
saltpetre, and half a pound of copperas. Mix well in swill, and feed to about 
forty hogs in one day. In four or five days give the following: Carbolic acid, 
eight drams, black antimony, two ounces, half pound of sulphur. Mix 
well in swill, and feed to about forty hogs in two days. Eepeat the above 
once a mouth, and it will prevent any of the above diseases. I have used it 
for ten years Avithout a single case of any disease among my hogs. 

A simple cure for hog cholera, says the Kentucky Live Stock Becord, is 
an infusion of peach-tree leaves and small twigs in boiling water, given in 
their slop. Peach leaves are laxative, and they probably exert, to a moderate 
extent, a sedative influence over the nervous system. They have been used 
as a worm destroyer with reported success. They have also been recom- 
mended as an infusion for irritability of the bladder, m sick stomach and 
whooping cough. The cases of fatal poisoning from theu' use in children are 
tm record, as peach leaves contain prussic or hydrocyanic acid, but as it is 
almost impossible to poison a hog, their use would not be objectionable. The 
specific is worth a trial. 

The report of the Greorgia Agricultural Department has a statement to the 
eflfect that forty cases of hog cholera Avere averted, if not cured, by turning 
the animals on to a quarter of an acre of clover, to graze for one Avcek. It 
has long been held that this disease springs mainly from malnutrition, and 
too much feeding on corn or other carbonaceous food. The fact that clover 
— a nitrogenous fodder — in this case averted the threatened disease is of 
great interest. The culture and use of clover in the South may through this 
Imowledge be greatly extended. 

Nancy Agree, of Missouri, some years since claimed the $10,000 premium 
•flfered by the legislature of that State for a cure for hog cholera. Her spe- 
cific is as follows: " Take inside bark of the Avild cherry tree and boil it down 
v,'ith water so as to make a strong solution, and give it to the hogs to drink, 
excluding them from water. It has proven a perfect cure, even in the last 
stages of the disease. I also recommend an admixture of the root of the 
bull nettle." 

A correspondent of the Journal of Agriculture recommends a half tea- 
spoonful of carbolic acid in a gill of milk. This remedy, he states, has been 
successful in every case and not only cures but stops the spread of the dis- 
ease. It is administered from the mouth of a long-necked bottle. 

Tlie Pig as a Plowmaji. — Farmers everywhere, says the Araei'ican 
Agricu'tinist, are influenced by the construction of railroads and other means 
of quick transportation, but none of them more so than those who grow meat 
as a branch of their farm operations. The pork-raisers in the older States 
come in competition Avith the swine products of the prairie States, Avhere 
the pig is a condenser of the corn crop, and among the most economical 
methods of sending that cereal to market — yet CA'en with cheap freights, it 
Avill not do for Eastern farmers to abandon the sty, and look to the West for 
their salt pork and hams. There are economies to be practiced in SAvine 
raising that Avill make the Eastern farmer successful in his competition Avith 
the West. He has the protection of freights over long distances which can 
never be very much reduced. The home market Avill ahvays be remunera- 
tive, so long as pork products are in demand. His lands need manure, and 
that which is made in the sty and under cover, is among the best of the home 
made fertilizers. Herding SAAine upon pasture, or old meadow, that needs 
breaking up, is not very much practiced, but is one of the best methods of 



180 THE FARM, 

raising pigs. They are as easily confined within a movable fence as sheep, 
utilize the grass and coarse feed quite as well, and perform a work in stir- 
ring the soil that sheep cannot do. The nose of the pig is made for rooting, 
and we follow Nature's hint in giving him a chance to stir the soil. A mova- 
ble yard, large enough to keep two pigs, can be made of stout inch boards, 
about fourteen feet long, and six inches wide. For the corner posts use tAvo 
by four inch joists. Nail the boards to the posts six inches apart, making 
four lengths or panels four feet high. Fasten the corners with stout hooks 
and staples, and you have a pen or yard fourteen feet square, which is easily 
moved by two men. If you place two fifty-pound pigs mto this yard they 
will consume nearly all the grass and other vegetation in it in three or four 
days, and thoroughly disturb the soil several inches in depth. When they 
have done their work satisfactorily, the pen can be moved to the adjoining 
plat, and so onward throiigh the season. The advantages of this method 
are, that it utilizes the grass and other vegetation, destroys weeds and in- 
sects, mixes and fertilizes the surface of the soil about as well as the ordi- 
nary implements of tillage. In the movable yard there is thorough work. 
Even ferns and small brush are eflfectually destroyed. Woi*ms and bugs ai-e 
available food for the pig. And it is not the least of the benefits that the 
small stones, if they are in Hie soil, are brought to the surface, Avhere they 
can be seen and removed. Tlie pig's snout is the primitive plow and crow- 
bar, ordained of old. No longer jeAvel this instrument, but put it where it 
Avill do the most 30od, in breaking up old sod ground, and help make cheap 
pork. 

Cliarcoal for Hog^.- -We have but little doubt that charcoal is one of 
the best known remedies for the disordered state into which hogs drill, usu- 
ally having disordered bowels, all the time giving off the Avorst kind of evacu- 
ations. Probably the best form in Avhich charcoal can be given is in the 
form of burnt corn— pei'haps, because when given in other forms the hogs do 
Mot get enough. A distillery was burned in Illinois, about which a large 
number of hogs Avere kept. Cholera prcA'ailed among these hogs somewhat 
extensively. In the buraing of buildings a large amoimt of corn was con- 
sumed. To this burned and partially burned corn, the hogs had access at 
will, and the sick commenced recovering at once and a large portion of them 
got well. Many farmers have practiced feeding scorched coi-n, putting it 
into the stove or building a fire upon the ground, placing the ears of corn 
upon it, leaving them till pretty Avell charred. Hogs fed on still slops are 
liable to be attacked by irritation of the stomach and boAvels, coming from 
too free generation of acid, from fermentation of food after eaten. Charcoal, 
whether it be produced by burning corn or wood, Avill neutralize the acid, in 
this way removing the irritating cause. The charcoal will be relished to the 
extent of getting rid of the acid, and beyond that it may not be. Hence it is 
Avell to let the wants of the hog be settled by the hog himself. 

Iron Hog Troughs — Upon the subject of the best material for hoK 
troughs, a writer says: " I make them out of iron, not out of iron-Avood, but 
cast iron. I grappled Avith this problem a half dozen years ago and mas- 
tered it. I became an inventor. I had an invention put into the forni of a 
model and got the proprietor of an iron foundry to cast eight troughs aftef 
the model. They were put into the different pens and they are there now, 
bright, clea», sjaooth, sound, and all ri^t, and I expect to leave thena just 
m this shape to my heirs. The model cost $18, and the troughs 6 cents a 



LIVE STOCK. 181 

pound, and they weighed an average of at least 100 pounds. Th« Bpout is 
east with the trough in one solid piece, and there are also feet oast and at- 
tached, by which it is fastened to the floor. The corners are made rounding 
and so is the bottom, so that freezing does not crack them, as the ice does 
not press against the corners or sides, but around the whole. They arc 
easily cleaned out, as the sloping sides allow the dirt to slide out before a 
broom, are always iu place, and will never wear out. The Avear and waste 
and annoyance ol modern troughs became unbearable. Now I contemplate 
this part of farm experience with a feeling akin to perfect satisfaction. The 
trough is not patented." 

Pliospliates Essential to Pigs. — Experiments made by Lehman upon 
young animals showed that food containing an insufficient amount of phos- 
phates not only affects the formation of the skeleton, but has an essential in- 
fluence upon its separate parts. A young pig was fed one hundred and 
twenty-six days upon potatoes alone; a result of this insufficient food, ra- 
chiiis (rickets, or softening of the bone). Other pigs, from the same litter, 
fed upon potatoes, leach-out-meat, and additional phosphates, for the same 
length of time, had a normal skeleton; yet even in these animals there was 
a difference according to the kind of phosphate 
added. Two that were fed on phosphate of pot- 
ash had porous bones, specifically lighter than 
the others, which were fed upon phosphate and 
carbonate of lime. 




Pig Scraping Table.—This table can easily 
be made by a handy man. It is formed by bars 
of Avood fixed into a frame. By using a table of 
thip description when scraping pigs, the water 
and hair fall to the ground, and the latter is ef- piQ sobaplng table. 
fectually disposed of. It is a simple arrange- 
ment, and its construction and use will materially aid in neatness and de- 
spatch. 

Preparing Food for Swine. — A writer gives the following opinion: 
" The present practice with the greater number, I believe, is to prepare food 
for pigs either by steeping, steaming, or boiling, under the belief that cook- 
ing in any shape is better than giving in the raw state. I am not at present 
prepared to say definitely what other kinds of food may do, raw or cooked, 
with pigs or other domesticated animals, or how the other animals would 
thrive with peas or com, raw or boiled; but I now assert on the strongest 
possible grounds — by evidence indisputable, again and again proved by 
actual trials in various temperatures, Avith a variety of the same animals, 
variously conducted— that for fast and cheap production of pork, raw peas 
are fifty per cent, better than cooked peas or Indian corn in any shape." 

Hogs as Producers of Manure. — One hog, kept to the age of one year, 
if famished with suitable material, wUl convert a cartload per month into a 
fertilizer which will produce a good crop of corn. Twelve loads per year 
multiplied by the number of hogs usually kept by our farmers would make 
sufficient fertilizing substance to groAV the corn used by them; or, in other 
words, the hog would pay in manure its keeping. In this way we oan afford 
to jftai.e porJi at Idw prices, but ia oo other Way <?ao it be dooe without lofis 
to the farmer 



182 THE FARM. 

Swine Raising — The Aniei^ican Agrlvultarisl contains the following 
sensible advice regarding the raising of swine: Pure air helps to make 
pure blood, which, in the course of nature, builds up healthful bodies. 
Out-of-door pigs would not show so well at the fairs, and would pi'oba- 
bly be passed over by judges and people who have been taught to ad- 
mire only the fat and helpless things which get the prizes. Such pigs 
are -well adapted to fill lard kegs, whereas the standard of perfection should 
be a pig which will make the most ham with the least waste of fat, the long- 
est and deepest sides, with the most lean meat; it should have bone enough 
to allow it to stand up and help itself to food, and carry with it the evidence 
of healthy and natural development in all its parts. Pigs Avhich run in a 
range or pasture have good appetites— the fresh air and exercise give them 
this — hence they \\i\\ eat a great variety of food and much coarser than when 
confined in pens. Nothing need go to Avaste on the farm for lack of a market. 
They will consume all the refuse fruits, roots, pumpkins, and all kinds ol 
vegetables, which will make them grow. By extending the root patch and 
planting the fodder corn thinner, so that nubbins will form on it, and by 
putting in a sweet variety, the number of pigs may be increased in propor- 
tion. A few bushels of corn at the end of the season will be ready the next 
year for any crop, and ten times the advantage accrue to the farm than if as 
the pigs are usually managed. 

Bone Meal for Strengtlieulng Hogs— Most farmers have noticed 
that in fattening swine, especially when they are crowded rapidly, they 
always appear weak in their hind legs, and sometimes lose the use of them 
entirely. An intelligent farmer says that he and his neighbors have made a 
practice of feeding bone meal in such cases, and find that a small quantity 
mixed with the daily feed will prevent any weakness, and strengthen the 
animals so as to admit of the most rapid forcing. As bone meal is known to 
be a preventive of cripple ail and weakness in cows, it looks reasonable that 
it should also be a benefit to hogs, which are often confined to a diet con- 
taining biit little bone-making material. 

Keeping Hogs Clean. — The floor of a hog pen should be of plank. The 
pen and hogs can then be kept clean. If the animals are permitted to root 
up the floor of the pen and burrow in the earth, they will . always be in an 
uncleanly and unwholesome condition, and much food will be wasted. It is 
quite unnecessary for either the comfort or health of the hogs to let them 
exercise their natural propensity to root in the ground. The exercise is 
really a waste of food and takes so much from their growth. Hogs will fat- 
ten most quickly when they eat and sleep and remain perfectly quiet, as they 
will do in a dry, warm pen, with a clean plank floor, and bedding of clean 
straw and plenty to eat. 

How to Give a Pig Medicine. — At a recent meeting of an Enghsh 
Farmers' Olub, Professor McBride spoke of the difficitlty of administering 
medicine to a pig. He said: " To dose a pig, which you are sitre to choke 
if you attempt to make him drink while squealing, halter him as you would 
for execution, and tie the rope end to a stake. He Avill pull back until the 
rope is tightly strained. When he has ceased his uproar, and begins to 
reflect, approach him, and between the feack part of his jaws insert an old 
shoe, from which you have cut the toe leather. This he will at once begin 
to suck and chew. Through it pour your medicine and he will swallow any 
quantity you please." 



LIVE /^TOC^. 183 

Hay for Hogs— Very few are aware of the fact that hay is very bene- 
ficial to hogs; but it is true, nevertheless. Hogs need rough food as well as 
horses, cattle or the human race To prepare it you should have a cutting- 
box (or hay cutter), and the greener the hay the better. Cut the hay short 
and mix with bran, shorts or middlings, and feed as other food. Hogs soon 
learn to Hke it, and if soaked in swill or other slop food, it is highly relished 
by them. In winter use for hogs the same hay you feed to your horses, and 
you will find that, while it saves bran, shorts or other food, it puts on flesh 
as rapidly as anythmg that can be given them. 

Paralysis in Pigs— Pigs are frequently subject to a partial paralysis of 
the nerves of the lumbar region, by which motion of the hind quarters is 
rendered difficult or impossible. It sometimes results from inflammation of 
the covering membrane of the spinal cord, caused by exposure to cold. The 
remedy is to rub turpentine or mustard paste upon the loins, and to give a 
teaspoonful of saltpetre in the food once a day. Dry pens and protection 
from rains in the hot season are the best preventives. 

Poisonous Swill — A correspondent of the Prairie Farmer, having 
complained of a disease among his hogs, is told by another correspondent 
that the symptoms are similar to those of hogs of his own, which he is satis- 
fied died from eating swill that had become poisoned by standing too long. 
He says: " Chemists say that when swill stands a certain length of time 
after it has soured, it becomes poisonous. I don't know that this is so, but I 
do know that I shall not feed any more old swill." 

Roots for Hogs — Parsnips, carrots, Swedish turnips, and especially 
mangel-wurtzels, will all fatten pigs. The roots ought not to be given in a 
raw state, but always cooked and mixed with beans, peas, Indian corn, oats, 
or barley, all of which must be ground into meal. When pigs are fed on 
such cooked food as we have stated, the pork acquires a pecuharly rich 
flavor, and is much esteemed, especially for family use. 

Economy in Hog Raising. — One man who let his hogs run on grass 
and artichokes all summer, Avas sure that his hogs paid him from fifty to 
sixty cents per bushel for the corn they consumed (not counting anything 
for the grass). Another man, who kept his hogs in a pen all summer with- 
out anything but com and water, did not realize more than ten or fifteen 
cents per bushel for the com consumed. 

"Water for Hogs. — Hogs require free access to water in the summer 
time. If they can have a place to bathe or wallow in, it is beneficial to them, 
as it cools and cleanses the skin. Mud is not filth — it is a good disinfectant 
and healthful. Sometimes mud baths have been found useful as medicinal 
treatment for sick people. 

Scurvy Pig". — It is said by a farmer who has tried the experiment so 
often as to be sure of his ground, that buttermilk poured over the back of a 
scurvy pig will entirely and speedily remove the scurf. The remedy is 
simple. 

Sqnasli for Fattening Hogs. — A New York farmer declares that an 
acre of Hubbard squash will fatten ten more hogs than the com that can be 
raised on the same ground. He has gathered from six to eight tons from an 
acre. 



184 



'THE FAliM 



Hurdling Sheep. — The accompanying illustration shows how an fing- 
lishman fed his sheep on an irrigated pasture, by the use of hurdles of 




a peculiar description. The hurdles are twelve feet long and are made with 
a stout pole bored Avith two series of holes twelves inches apart; stakes six 
feet long are put into these holes so that they project from them three feet 



ITVK STOCK. 186 

5n each side of the pole. One series of holes is bored in a direction at right 
angles to that of the other, and when the stakes are all properly placed they 
form a hurdle, the end of which looks like the letter X. The engraving 
shows how these hurdles are made and the method of using them. A row 
of these hurdles is placed across the field. The field in which they are used 
consists of six acres. A strip of ten feet wide is thus set oft', upon which four 
hundred sheep feed. They eat up all the grass upon this strip and that 
which they can reach by putting their heads through the hurdles. The 
hurdles are then turned over, exposing another strip of rather more than 
four feet wide at each turn. When this is fed oft", the hurdles are again 
turned over. The shai'p points presented by the hurdles prevents any tres- 
passing upon the other side of them, and by using two rows of hurdles the 
sheep are kept in the narrow strip between them. Their droppings are very 
evenly spread over the field, and it is richly fertilized by them. At night 
the sheep are taken off and the grass is watered. The growth is one inch 
per day under this treatment, and when the field has been fed over, the 
sheep are brought back again to the starting point and commence once 
more eating their way along. 

Raising Feed for Slieep. — The corn raised especially for sheep should 
be planted in drills, three and one-half feet apart, and about six inches in 
the drill. It will ear sufficiently, and should be shocked when the ear is 
just passing out of the milk, in large, well-built shocks. And the most 
profitable use that can be made of this for winter feeding is, to run it 
through a cutter, directly from the shock, reducing to fine chaff, stalks, 
ears, and all. If cut one-fourth of an inch long, the sheep will eat it all 
clean; this we know from practical experience. "With a large cutter, a ton 
can be cut in twenty to thirty minutes. This cut corn, fed in properly con- 
structed troughs, will furnish both grain and coarse fodder. The only im- 
provement you can make on this ration, without cooking, is to feed with it 
some more nitrogenous food, such as bran, linseed meal, or cotton seed 
meal. Wocl is a nitrogenous product, and com is too fattening a ration 
when fed alone. 

To Tell thie Age of Slieep. — The books on sheep have seriously misled 
flock-masters on this subject. Almost any sheej) owner will tell you that 
after a year the sheep gets a pair of broad teeth yearly: and if you show 
that his own three-year-olds have four pairs of broad teeth, he can only 
claim that they are exceptions, and protest that they do not exceed three 
years of age. Now these cases are no exception, for all well-bred sheep 
have a lull mouth of front teeth at three years old. Some old, unimproved 
flocks may still be found in which the mouth is not full until nearly four 
years old, but fortunately these are now the exceptions, and shoiild not be 
made the standard, as they so constantly are. In Cotswolds, Leicesters, 
Lincolns, South-Downs, Oxford-Downs, Hampshire-Downs, and even in the 
advanced Merinos, and in the grades of all of these dentition is comiDleted 
from half a year to a year earlier. The milk or lamb teeth are easily dis- 
tinguished from the permanent or broad teeth by their smaller size and by 
the thickness of the jaw bone around their fangs where the permanent teeth 
are still inclosed. As the lamb approaches a year old, the broad exposed 
part of the tooth becomes worn away, and narrow fangs projecting above the 
gums stand apart from each other, leaving wide intervals. This is even 
more marked after the first pair of permanent teeth have come up, overlap- 



m 



THE FA MM. 



ping each other at their edges, and from this time onward the number of 
small milk teeth and of broad pei'manent teeth can usually be made out 
with ease. Another distinguishing feature is the yellow or dark coloration 
of the fangs of the milk teeth, while the exposed portions of the permanent 
teeth are white, clear, and pearly. The successive pairs of permanent teeth 
make their appearance through the gums in advanced breeds at about the 
following dates: The first pair at one year; the second pair at one year and 
a half; the thkd pair at two years and three months; the fourth and last 
pair at three years. It will be observed that between the appearance of the 
first two pairs there is an interval of six months, while after this each pair 
come up nine months after its predecessors. For backward grades, and 
the^ unimproved breeds, the eruption is about six months later for each 
pair of teeth, but even with them the mouth is full at three years and six 
months. 

Slieep Ticksi Ho-*v to Get Rid of Tliem. — Sheep ticks are much more 

numerous and more annoying than many suppose. Men of experience with 
large flocks generally know and apply the necessary remedies, but there are 

hundreds of farmers whose 
time and attention are 
principally directed to 

§|\U/ I" fk <JIL i^ grain growing, etc., and 

111 hJfS ^'.^^mk^'M who keep but a few sheep, 

\ 1 1 111 '*^^mm^^^^L^ whose flocks are sorely 

I -v^J-l. ^^^S^i^^^^P^ troubled by this parasite, 

I /CJLxX ^. ^^^ ^^ ^^^ ^^^^y ^ever discover 
if/ W%Jlf flEH^K *^® ^'^^^^® "^ *^^® ^^^^" ^^® 
II 5 H^ J^ J^wSffili^l accompanying engraving of 

the insect in its different 
stages,, is from the Cyclo- 
paedia of Agriculture. 

The sheep tick or louse 
lives amongst the wool, and 
is exceedingly annoying to lambs. Their oval, shining bodies, like the pips 
of small apples, and similar in color, may be found attached by the pointed 
end to the wool. (See engraving Fig. 1; Fig. 2, the same magnified.) These 
are not the eggs, but the pupfe, which are laid by the female, and are at first 
soft and white. From these issue the ticks (Fig. 3; Fig. 4, the same magni- 
fied), which arc horny, bristly, and dull ochre; the head is orbicular, with 
two dark eyes (Fig. 5), and a rostrum in front, enclosing three fine curved 
tubes (Fig. 6), for piercing the skin and sucking the blood. The body is 
large, leathery, purse-shaped and whitish when alive, and notched at the 
apex. The six legs are stout, very bristly, and the feet are furnished ^vith 
strong double claws. The English remedies are a wash of arsenic, soft 
soap and potash, decoction of tobacco, train oil >Adth spirits of turpentine, 
and mercurial ointment. 

Ticks, Avhen very numerous, greatly annoy and enfeeble sheep, and 
should be kept out of the flock if possible. After shearing, the heat and 
cold, the rubbing and biting of the sheep, soon drive oft' the tick and it takes 
refuge in the long wool of the lamb. Wait a fortnight after sheaiing to allow 
all to make this transfer of residence; then boil refuse tobacco leaves until 
the decoction is strong enough to kill ticks beyond a peradventure. This 
may be readily tested by experimenit. Five or six pounds of cheap plug to- 




.5 ^A 

FIG. 1. — SHEEP TICKS, MAGNIFIED. 



LIVE STOCK 



187 



bacco may be made to ausAvcr for one hundred lambs. The decoction is 
poured into a deep, narrow dipping tank kept for this purpose, and which 
has an inclined shelf on one side covered with a wooden grate, as shown in 
our illustration below (Fig. 2). One man holds the lamb by the hind legH, 
another clasps the fore legs in one hand, and shuts the other about the 
nostrils to prevent the liquid entering them, and then the lamb is entirely 
immersed. It is immediately lifted out, laid on one side on the grate, and 
the water squeezed out of its avooI. It is then turned over and squeezed on 
the other side. The grate conducts the fluid back into the box. If the lamljs 
are annually dipped, ticks will never trouble a flock. 

Eai-ly L.a,inl>s. — lu many localities an early lamb Avill sell for more 
money than will the ewe and her fleece; therefore, Avhere there is a market 
for eai'ly lambs the breeding of these is a very profitable business, if the per- 
son who attempts it is pro- 
vided with ample shelter 
and understands the man- 
agement of both ewes and 
lambs. 

Lambs for early market 
are bred so as to be dropped 
in February and March. 
February is a hard month to 
bring them through, and 
Avithout judicious treatment 
and warm shelter many 
lambs will be lost. The 
chief aim is to get the lambs 
ready for market as soon as 
possible, as it is the earliest 
arrivals that gain the high- 
est prices. It is necessary 
to keep the dams in good 
condition with sufficient 
food to make plenty of 
nourishing milk. Experi- 
ence and judgment are required in feeding the lambs; they must have food 
enough to promote rapid, healthy growth, and yet of a character that will 
not j^roduce scouring. While the lambs are still with the ewes, it is well'to 
supply them additional food. They can soon be taught to drink milk which 
is fresh and warm from the cow. Later on, oats, rye and wheat bran finely 
ground together make an excellent feed. As a gentle laxative a few ounces 
of linseed oil-cake will be found beneficial and at the same time nourishing. 

As the lambs approach the period for weaning extra food should be in- 
creased; indeed, the weaning miist be very gradually accompUshed. The 
sudden removal of the lambs from their dams is injurious to both. A plan 
generally followed to avoid the evil effects of a sudden change, is that of 
removing the lambs to a good pasture of shoi't, tender grass, and at night 
returning them to the fold with the ewes. The ewes must not be neglected. 
Their feed should be gradually diminished so as to diminish the yield of milk. 

How to Make Slxeep Pay —Any farmer in the Eastern or Middle 
States having a farm of one htindred acres in good fence can keep a flock of 




FIG. 2. — TANK FOB DIPPING SHEEP. 



188 . THE FARM. 

fifty sheep and receive larger profits than from any other investment of the 
same amount, providing they will care for them in the following manner, 
viz.: Have your sheep in good condition when you take them from pasture 
to winter. Have a sheltered pen, with plenty of room, to protect them from 
the cold and storms; have an oxit-yard where they can be allowed to go in 
on nice sunshiny days, in Avhich tliroAV cornstalks, oat or wheat straw, if you 
have plenty of it, for Avhat the sheep do not eat will make manure, so there 
will be notliing lost. Also keep the sheltered pen dry, by tlirowing in straw, 
as fast as it is cut up in manure. Feed them on clover hay. If you do not 
grow any buy it, for one ton of clover hay is equal to two tons of any other 
for sheep, in my experience. Try and have your lambs dropped in January 
or February. Build a small pen alongside of your sheep pen, cut a small 
hole, so the lambs can get in, but not large enough to admit the sheep. Put 
troughs in the lambs' pen, and feed them on ground feed. They will soon 
find the hole and learn to eat, and if you have never tried it before, you Avill 
be surpnsed how much faster they will grow, and you Avill also find that the 
butcher will buy your lambs earlier, and pay a larger price for them than he 
will for your neighbor's, who does not observe the above advice. 

Feed Rack for Slieep — Feed racks for stocks are indispensable 

articles of furniture in the 
sheds and yards of the farm. 
We give an engraving of one of 
these, designed especially for 
sheep. Its dimensions are 
thirty inches high, twenty- 
eijrht wide, bottom formed by 
naihng together four boards, 
eight or nine inches wide, in 
FEED EACK FOB SHEEP. the shape of two troughs, or 

the letter W, resting on the 
cross piece B. The novel feature, perhaps, is the cant boards A A, which are 
hinged and then fastened by movable braces. These boards serve as par- 
ticular shelter to sheep, both from storm and chaflf from fodder; and by 
moving the braces they assume a vertical position, and thus keep out the 
sheep while one is filling in the grain. 

AVIiy Slieep are Profitable — Sheep are i)rofi table for several reasons, 
among them being the small expense of maintaining a flock. By that we 
do not mean the plan pursued by many of turning them into the woods and 
fields to be called up occasionally to be " salted," but they cost but little 
when cared for, because they are not choice in the matter of feeding. They 
greedily devour much that would be unserviceable, and for that reason are 
a necessary adjunct on a farm as a measure of economy. Where they become 
serviceable mostly is on those pastures that are deficient in long grass, and 
Avhich are not used for making hay. It is on this short grass, even if scatter- 
ing, that the sheep pick up good feeding and thrive well. In fact, long 
grass is not acceptable to sheep, as they graze close to the ground. A flock 
of sheep would almost starve in a field of tall clover, and will quickly leave 
such for the privilege of feeding on the short herbage that grows in the fence 
corners, in the abandoned meadows, and among the wheat stubble. The 
crab grass, which becomes a weed on laght soils, is Ijighly relished by abeep 
when just beginning to spread ©ut, and even the purslane is kept down by 




LIVE STOCK. \m 

them. Fields from which the corn has been harvested afford them much 
valuable pasturage, and they are always able to derive something for food 
on places that would support no other animal. In saying this it is not in- 
ferred that they require no care at the barn. They surely do, but require 
less than may be supposed. 

They are also great renovators of the soil, scattering manure evenly and 
pressing it in, thus improving the ground on which they feed. They multiply 
rapidly, a small flock soon becoming a large one, and they produce profit in 
three directions— wool, mutton and lambs. 

Tar the Noses of Sheep. — The months of July and August are the ones 
when sheep in many localities are subject to a most aggravating annoyance 
from a fly (oes<ras6oo/s), which seems bound to deposit its larvae in the 
nostrils. It infects wooded districts and shady places where the sheep 
resort for shelter, and by its ceaseless attempts to enter the nose makes the 
poor creature almost frantic. If but one fly is in a flock thsy all become 
agitated and alarmed. They will assemble in groups, holding their heads 
close together and their noses to the ground. As they hear the buzzing of 
the little pest going from one to another, they will crowd their muzzles into 
the loose dirt, made by their stamping, to protect themselves, and as the 
pest succeeds in entering the nose of a victim, it will start on a run, folloAved 
by the whole flock, to find a retreat from its enemy, throwing its head from 
side to side, as if in the greatest agony, while the oestrus, having gained his 
lodging place, assiduoiisly deposits its larvse in the inner margin of the nose. 
Here, aided by warmth and moisture, the eggs quickly hatch into a small 
maggot, which carrying out its instincts, begins to crawl up into the nose 
through a crooked opening in the bone. The annoyance is fearful and mad- 
dening, as it works its way up into the head and cavities. 

The best known remedy is tar, in which is mixed a small amount of crude 
carbolic acid. If the scent of the acid does not keep the fly away he gets 
entangled in the tar, which is kept soft by the heat of the animal. Any kind 
of tar or turpentine is useful for this purpose, and greatly promotes the com- 
fort of the sheep, and prevents the ravages of the bot in the head. 

Increasing the Gro"wth of Wool — The use of chloride of potassium is 
recommended in Germany as a means of increasing the growth of wool on 
sheep. Some German chemists have made experiments with the article, 
proving that the growth of wool is promoted by its use. It is administered 
in the proportion of one part of chloride to nine parts of salt. It not only 
increases the production of wool, but improves the quality, and promotes 
the general health of the animal, we are told; but the proper quantities to^ 
adftninister are not stated. 

To Cure Poisoned Slieep. — Take rue leaves, as many as you can grasp 
between thumb and forefinger. Bruise them; squeeze the juice into a half 
teacup of water, and drench the sheep with it. If the sheep are poisoned 
very bad, drench the second time, which will never fail to cure. 

Crossing Merino on (Common Sheep. — A Menno ram crossed on a 
flock of common sheep will double the yield of wool through the first cross 
alone, thus -paying for himself the first season. 



THE POULTRY YARU. 




A PonKry House for Cliiclceii.s. — The poultry house we have ilhistrated 
in designed for young chicks. It can be attaclied to a coop, and is made of 
laths. It is the length of a lath and half a lath in height. 

*uch an arrangement allows the mother some room to move about, and 
enables the young chicks to reach air and sun. Almost any bright boy can 
nail the laths together, and it will materially increase the chickens' chances 
of life. Bemember that the first few days are the most critical and re(pTire 
extra attention. 

More fowls are destroyed in infancy, like humans, by injudicious feeding 
than at any other +ime. The first four weeks' management of the young 
chicks ia everything, for no after cares can compensate for neglect during 

the critical period. For 
the first twenty-four hours 
no food should be given 
the chicks of any kind. At 
first there may be given 
hard-boiled egg, chopped 
fine. This need only be 
given for two or three days 
when the food should be 
changed to one consisting 
of oatmeal cooked in milk, 
to which an egg has been 
added. The second week the milk and oatmeal gruel, stiffiy made, should 
be continued, and good Avheat screenings allowed also. After the second 
week the food may be varied so as to consist of anything they will eat, but 
do not confine them to a single article of diet, as disease of the bowels may 
occur. Green grass, cooked vegetables and milk may be given freely. The 
chicks should not be allowed to roam outside Avith the hen, if possible, until 
the sun is well up, as dampness is more injurious to them than cold. When 
very young feed every two hours, as feathers, bone and meat are forming 
Tast, requiring plenty of nourishment. When cleanliness is observed but 
few diseases appear. Never let a surplus of food remain after the feeding is 
over, but see that they are sufficiently supplied before taking the excess 
away. Young chicks are not troublesome to raise if a little system and care 
are practiced. 

A Model Hennery .—The breeding of new and choice varieties of poultry 
has grown to be quite an extensive industry in this country during the past 
few years, and it is not entirely confined to those who mak© it a business, 
either, as many of our farmers have learned, at last, that it pays to devote 
more time and attention to the raising and care of poultry tbau they formerly 
were willing to give to it. The model hennery herewith Illustrated ai^d de- 
scribed combines all the essential requisites for convenience, cleanliness, the 



A POULTKY HOUSE FOB CHICKS. 



THli: POULTRY TAtiD. 



191 



tealth of the fowls, and the separation of the different varieties, together 
with all the modern improvements, from which many good hints may be ob- 
tained, if not wishing to adopt the plan just as it stands. 

This building is nearly 75 feet long, 13 feet high, and 12 feet wide. It is 
built of wood, the roof shingled. To the highest pitch of the roof it is 13 




feet. The elevation or height from the ground or foundation in front is 4 
feet, which cuts a twelve-foot board into three pieces, the length or pitch of 
jbe roof in front is 12 feet— just the length of a board, sa\4ng a few inches of 
a ragged end; tjie pitch of the rear roof is 6 feet, and the height of the build- 
ing from the ground to the base of the roof is just 6 feet, which cuts a twelve- 
foot board into two pieces. The ground plan and frame work are planned 
on the same principles of economy of timber. By this plan no timber is 



19^ 



THE FARM. 



wasted, as it all cuts out clean; there is also a great saving of labor. Thd 
foundation of the building rests on cedar posts set four feet into the ground. 

This house contains eight pens, each one of wliichwill accommodate from 
twenty-five to thirty fowls; each pen is nine feet long and eight feet wide. 
All the pens are divided off by wire partitions of one inch mesh. Each pen 
has a glass window on the southern front of the house, extending from the 
gutter to Avithin one foot of the apex of the roof, fixed in permanently with 
French glass lapping over each other, after the fashion of hot-bed sashes; 
they are about eleven by three feet. Each pen is entered by a wire door six 
feet high, fi'om the hallway, which is three feet wide; and these doors are 
carefully fastened with a brass padlock. 

The house is put together with matched boards, and the grooves of the 
boards are filled in with white lead and then driven together, so as to make 
the joints impervious to cold or wet. On the rear side of the house there are 




A MODEL HEKNEKY. — END VIEW OF INTEBIOR. 

four scuttles or ventilators, two by two leet, placed equidistant from each 
other, and to these are attached iron rods which fit into a slide with a screw, 
so that they can be raised to any height. These are raised, according to the 
weather, every morning, to let ofi" the foul air. Each pen has a ventilator 
besides the trap door at the bottom, same size, which communicates Avith the 
pens and runs. These lower ventilators are used only in very hot weather, 
to allow a free circulation through the building, and in summer each pen is 
shaded from the extreme rays of the sun by thick shades fastened upon the 
inside, so that the inside of the house is cooler than the outside. 

The dropping boards extend the whole width of the pen, and are about 
two feet wide and sixteen inches from the floor; the roosts are about seven 
inches above and over this board. They are three inches wide and crescent- 
shaped on top, so that the fowls can rest a considerable portion of their 
bodies on the perches. Under these dropping boards are the nest boxes, 
where the fowls lay, and are shaded and secluded. The feeding and drink- 



THE FOUL THY YAH J). 193 

ing troughs are made of galvanized iron, and hung with hooks on eyes, so 
that they can be easily removed when they require cleaning. 

One can stand at one end of this long house and see all the chickens on 
their roosts. By 
seeing each other in 
this way the fowls 
are made compan- 
ionable and are 
saved many a fero- 
cious fight; at the 
same time each kind 
is kept separate 
from the other. Each 
pen has a run 33 by 
12 and 15 feet; these 
runs are separated 
by wire fences 12 
feet high, with 
meshes of 2 inches. 

The house is sur- 
rounded with a 
drain which carries 
off all the moisture 
and water, and pre- 
vents dampness. In- 
side the house is 
cemented all 
through, and these 
cemented floors are 
covered with gravel 
two inches deep. 
The house is heated 
in the cold weather 
just enough to keep 
water from freezing. 
The plan of this hen- 
nery is remarkable 
for its simplicity and 
hygienic arrange- 
ment. The cost of 
the labor and ma- 
terial is under $500. 

Movable Poul- 
try House. — Those 
who have tried mov- 
able poultry houses 
regard them as ex- 
ceedingly profitable arrangements, and very desirable. We give an illustra- 
tion of one in use in England, Avhich is mounted on wheels, with a floor 
raised high enough above ground to form a dry run. It has a set of mova- 
ble laying nests at back, outside flap-door with lock, large door with lock, 
for attendant, small sUding door and ladder for fowls, two shifting perches. 




194 



THE FARM, 



and sliding window. The benefit birds of all description derive from change 
of place, not only arises from the pleasure every animal as well as man de- 
rives from changes of scene, biit by being preserved from the exhalations 
emitted by excrementitious matter and decaying food. 

Model Poultry House.— We give a plan of poultry house and yards, 

combining many good 
points and conveniences. 
The building is enclosed 
with worked spruce or 
pine boards, put on ver- 
tically, and the height so 
arranged that each bca-d 
will cut to avoid waste. 
All the pieces are cut off 
of the full lengths in 
front, making just half a 
rear length. The rafters 
of thirteen feet joist, with either battened or shingle roof as preferred. The 
building is supposed to face the south. The entrance door, E, opening into 
the passage, P, three and a half feet wide, which runs the length of the build- 
ing; smaller doors, D, each two feet wide, opening into the roosting room, R. 
The nests are raised about a foot from the floor, and also open into the room 
R, with a hinged board in the passage, so that the eggs can be removed with- 
out entering the roosting rooms. The perches, A, are movable, perfectly 
level, and raised two feet 




ELEVATION.— LENGTH, 24 FEET; WIDTH, 11 FEET 
HEIGHT, IN FKONT, 9 1-2 FEET; HEIGHT, IN BEAR, 
6 1-2 FEET. 



MM I I I \ '9 y \ \ w I I r-jpx-i I m r i^ 



-%». . . . ■ . ..s 



J» 



from the floor. The parti- 
tion walls are tight, two 
boards high, above which is 
lath; the passage wall above 
the nest, and also the doors, 
D, being of lath also. 

The roosting-rooms are 
seven and a half by eight 
feet, large enough for 
twenty-five fowls each. Win- 
dows are six feet square, 
raised one foot from the 
floor. We prefer the glass 
to be six by eight or seven 
by nine inches — as these 
small sizes need no protec- 
tion strips to prevent the 
fowls from breaking them. 
The holes, H, for egress and 

ingress of the fowls, are closed by a drop door worked by a cord and pulley 
from the passage way. Another door can be placed in the other end of the 
passage way if desirable. This arrangement of the yards, Y, of course would 
not suit every one; some would prefer smaller yards, making each yard the 
width of the room and adding to its height. The iiouse above is designed 
for only three varieties; but by simply adding to the length, any number of 
breeds may be accommodated. The simplest and most economical founda- 
tion is to set locust or oak posts about four feet deep, every eight feet, and 



PLAN AND YARD. 



THE P JTL TR Y TA B t) . 



195 



si^ike the 8ills ou them. There is then no heavmg from frost; and all the 
underpinning necessary is a board nailed tc the sill and extending into the 
ground a couple of inches. A se'^ting room can be added by making the 
building four feet longer. The room should be in the end next the door, so 
as to be always within notice. 

Such a house built of seasoned lumber and well battened, will shelter any 
fowls — excepting, perhaps, 
the Spanish, Leghorns, and 
a few of the more tender va- 
rieties — from all ordinarily 
cold weather; and we be- 
lieve it to be the cheapest 
and most convenient house 
for general use. 

Cliickeu and Duclc Iii- 
closure. — We present here- 
with a plan for chicken or 
duck coops, Avith inclosures, 
which will be found very 
convenient fixtures in any 
poultry-yard. These coops 
are made so that they are 
movable, and can be con- 
structed by almost any one 
conversant with the use of a 
hammer and nails. Any re- 
fuse boards and odd pieces 
are all that are necessary to 
build them. The coops can 
be set in any desired posi- 
tion, then fenced in with 
boards twelve to sixteen 
inches wide, as shown in our 
engraving, with stakes driven 
in the ground ou each side 
of the boards at intervals, to 
keep them from falling over. 
Put up in this manner the 
stakes can be withdx'awn at 
will and the inclosure moved 
as often as desirable. For 
partitions our engraving has 
shown a light wu-e mesh, 
which is easy to handle and 

can be procured at a very small cost. This is fastened into position by pin- 
ning down with wooden pins, which, in this way, is made also movable. 

Caponizing. — Caponizing is not a very difficult operation, and any one 
who is blessed with the average amoimt of brains and common sense can 
soon learn to caponize as quickly and as successfully as an " expert." We 
know that some one will probably tell you that the instruments used are 
" very delicate," and the operation can only be safely performed by an ex- 




196 THE FABM. 

pert; but dou't believe it. We once wrote out the directions for caponizing, 
and sent them to a lady who was anxious to know how to perform the opera- 
tion. With the Avritten directions before her, she first operated on some 
half-dozen of cockerels that had been killed for table use, and then tried her 
hand on the living birds, with excellent success. In three days, besides 
doing her usual housework, she caponized 162 cockerels, and only three of 
them died from the effects of the operation. 

If you live near any one who understands caponizing, and is willing to 
teach others, go and learn how, but if you cannot do that, go and get a set 
of instruments and teach yourself. A set of caponizing instruments consists 
of a pointed hook, a steel splint with a broad, flat hook at each end, a pair 
of tweezers, and a pair of crooked concave forceps. In the first place, kill a 
young cockerel and examine it carefully, so that you will be able to tell the 
exact position of the organs to be removed. You will find them within the 
cavity of the abdomen, attached to the back, one on each side of the spine. 
They are light colored, and the size varies with the age and bi-eed. 

After you have "located" the parts to be removed, practice the opera- 
tion on chickens that have been killed, until you are sure that you can oper- 
ate quickly and safely; then you may try your hand on the living birds. 
Place the bird on its left side in a rack that will hold it firmly in position 
without injuring it, or else draw the wings back and fasten them with a broad 
strip of cloth; draw the legs back and tie them with another strip; then let 
the attendant hold the fowl firmly on the table, one hand on the wings and 
head, the other on the legs, while you perform the operation. Remove the 
feathers from a spot a little larger than a silver dollar, at the point near th( 
hip, upon the line between the thigh and shoulder. Draw the skin back- 
ward, hold it firm wliile you make a clean cut an inch and a half long be- 
tween the last two ribs, and lastly throiigh the thin membrane that lines the 
abdominal cavity. In making the last cut, take care and not injure the in- 
testines. Now take the splint and separate the ribs by attaching one of the 
hooks to each rib, and then allowing the splint to spread; push the intestines 
away with a teaspoon handle, find the testicles; take hold of the membrane 
that covei'S them and hold it with the tweezers; tear it open with the hook; 
grasp the spermatic cord with the tweezers, and then twist off the testicle 
with the forceps. Remove the other in the same way. The left testicle is 
usually a little farther back than that on the right, and should be removed 
first. During the operation take care not to injure the intestines, or rupture 
the large blood vessels attached to the organs removed. The operation 
completed, take out the sphnt, allow the skin to resume its place, stick on 
some of the feathers that were removed, which Avill absorb the blood and 
cover the wound; give plenty of drink, but feed sparingly on soft cooked 
food for a few days, or until they begin to move around pretty lively. 

To prepare cockerels for caponizing, shut them up without food or drink 
for twenty-four hours previous to the operation, for if the intestines are full 
the operation will be more diificult and dangerous. Cockerels that are in- 
tended for capons should be operated upon between three and four months 
of age. Cockerels of any breed may be caponized, but of course the larger 
breeds are the best. A cross between the Light Brahmas and Partridge 
Cochins will produce extra large cockerels for capons, but only the first 
ci'oss is desirable. Capons grow fully one-third larger than the ordinary 
male fowl of the same age and bi*eed. Their flesh is more delicate and juicy, 
and they command prices, from thirty to fifty per cent, higher than common 
poultry, but outside the largest cities thqte is no market for them. 



THE PO UL TR Y YA It D . 



197 




FIG. 1.— INSIDE OF INCUBATOR. FEONT 
SECTION— T, tank; L C, LAMP CLOS- 
ET, B B, BRACKETS. 



Ixood and Cheap lucubatorsii. — For the benefit of those who desire to 
experience some of the pleasures and profits of artificial incubation, we here 
give a model of a veiy simple and reliable incubator, with directions for 
making the same. 

Have a pine case made somewhat like a common washstand (see Fig. 2) 

without the inside divisions. _ 

About a foot from the floor of this 
case, place brackets like those in Fig- 
1, and on a level with these screw a 
strong cleat across the back of the 
case inside. These are to support the 
tank. 

The tank should be made of gal- 
vanized iron, three inches deep and 
otherwise proportioned to fit exactly 
within the case and rest upon the 
brackets and cleat. The tank should 
have a top or cover soldered on when 
it is made. At the top of this tank in 
the center should be a hole an inch in 
diameter with a rim two inches high, and at the bottom, toward one end, a 
faucet for drawing off the water. When the tank is set in the case fill up all 
the chinks and cracks between the edges of the tank and the case with plas- 
ter Paris to keep all fumes of the lamp from the eggs. 

Fill the tank at least two inches deep with boiling water. 
To find when the right depth is required, gauge the water vnth a small 
stick. Over the top of the tank spread fine gravel a quarter of an inch thick; 

over this lay a coarse cot- 
ton cloth. Place the eggs 
on the cloth, and set a kero- 
sene safety-lamp under the 
center of the tank. 

The door of the lamp- 
closet must have four holes 
for ventilation, otherwise 
the lamp will not burn. 
The lamp-closet is the 
space within the incubator 
under the tank. Turn the 
eggs carefully every morn- 
ing and evening, and after 
turning sprinkle them with 
qiiite warm water. Two 
thermometers should be 
kept in the incubator, one 
half way between the center and each end; the average heat should be 105 
degrees. 

If the eggs do not warm up well, lay a piece of coarse carpet over them. 
If they are too warm, take out the lamp and open the cover for a few min- 
utes, but do not let the eggs get chilled. If they should happen to get down 
to 98 degrees, and up to a 108 degrees, you need not think the eggs are 
spoiled. They will stand such a variation once in a while; but of course a 
uniform temperature of 105 degrees will secure more chickearj, and they will 




FIG. 2. — INCUBATOR CLOSED. 



198 



THE FAIiM, 



be stronger and mure lively. In just such au incubator as tiie one de- 
scribed, the writer hatched over two hundred chickens two years ago. 

For those who are ambitious to try top heat, the same sort of a tank is 

required, but a boiler must 
be attached at the side with 
an upper and lower pipe for 
cu-culation. Any plumber 
can attacli the boiler, and 
the faucet must be at the 
bottom of the boiler on one 
side. 

The drawers containing 
the eggs should slide be- 
neath the tank. A stand 
for the lamp should be 
screwed to one end of tb') 
case in such a position as to bring the lamp under the boiler (see illustration 
above). This incubator can be cooled by raising the lid, turning down the 
lamp and pulling the drawers part way out. 

In both incubators while the eggs are hatching sprinkle them two or three 
times with quite warm water. After the chicks are hatched they need a 
warm cover, a good run, plenty 
of clean gravel, fresh water, tine 
C]-acked corn, and green food 
crerv day. 




TOP HEAT IXCUBATOE, OX TABLE. 




FIG. 4. — FOKM OF TANK. 



Hov»^ to Raise Artificially- 
HatcUed Cliiolceiis._The fol- 
ioAving article is from the pen of a gentleman who has given the matter of 
the artificial hatching of chickens much careful study, and he tells how to 
successfully raise the young chicks after being so hatched: 

**It is evident to the most casual observer that chickens hatched without 
a mother must be raised without a mother. Born orphans, they must re- 
main orphans. Wlien my incubator produced the first chick, what a com- 
motion there was in the house. 
The birth of a baby Avouldn't 
have been a circumstance to 
it; and while the Avomen-folks 
Avould have known what to do 
w i t h a new baby, we all 
looked at one another with 
blank bewilderment when the 
question was asked what we 
shoiild do with the new chick. 
The thermometer outside Avas 
down nearly to the freezing 
point, while in the iucul^ator 
the temperature was 1U5 degrees. The little chick's hair stood on end, and 
he was panting for dear life. He must come out of there, and as his brothers 
and sisters were following him out of the shells, we began to pi-epare all 
sorts of receptacles for them. We rigged up a mother on the heater, and 
put in it several chicks that lived a few hours and then died. We de- 
cided it was too cold, so we put others in a box and put them back in the 




FIG. 1. 



THE POULTRY YARD. 



199 




incubator, where some of them were smothered with the heat. It waa 
evident something must be done, or we would soon have no chicks to 
experiment with. I determined in my own mind that a temperature of about 
ninety degrees would be correct, so I rigged up the brooder and started the 
lamp, put in the thermometer, and Avheu the proper degree of heat was 
reached, put what was left of the chicks into the brooder, and they began to 
brighten up. The problem was solved, though its solution cost me the lives 
of many fine chicks. 

"With further experience, I find the following treatment a complete suc- 
cess: After the chick breaks the shell, let him scramble around and diy 
himself in the incubator, which 
will generally take a few hours, 
though some are much strong- 
er than others. After too much 
exercise they begin to pant, and 
should, of course, be removed. 
I have a box twelve inches 
square and six inches high. To 
the lid of this tack strips of 
woolen cloth an inch wide and 
two inches apart. These rags 
should hang within two inches 
of the bottom. Put a half inch of dry sand in the box. The brooder is kept 
at a temperature between eighty and ninety degrees. The young chicks, 
when perfectly dry, are taken from the oven and put in the box, and the box 
put in the brooder where the other chicks are. Air holes should be cut in 
the lid of the box, for if cut in the side the other chicks peck owt the feathers 
of the little ones through these holes. This box keeps the chicks warm, and 
they soon biighten up, and at the end of twelve hours are ready to take the 
first lesson in eating. Take a hard boiled egg and chop the white and yelk 
up together as fine as grains of wheat; with it cover the bottom of a little pan 
— the top of a blacking box will do. Place this in the box with the chicks, 

and, while tapping ^ith the 
finger in the feed, repeat 
'tuck, tuck,' like the clucking 
of a hen (Fig. 1). A Httle 
patience, and one chick will 
see something and peck at it, 
when the others will follow 
suit, and in a few minutes the 
first lesson is learned. After 
a fcAV meals, with this process 
repeated, it Mali be only nec- 
essary to rap on the box, and the little fellows will be ready for their meal, 
and also be spry enough to be put out of the box and run with the others in 
the brooder. 

" The next lot of chicks I feed as follows: Stale wheat bread is soaked in 
water. A cupful of oatmeal or rice has boiling water poured over it, and is 
stirred until it takes up all the water. I mix two handfuls of soaked bread, 
with the water squeezed out, with one handful of this oatmeal, and dry it all 
with unbolted cornmeal until it crumbles freely. A little salt is mixed up 
with it. This, with a little meat once a day, is their sole feed, and it is given 
about every three hours until the chicks are a week old, or until the winga 




FIG. 3. 



260 



THE FARM. 



arc large enough to cover their backs, when they are put in a pen. This lot 
is fed the above mixture live or six times, with meat or worms once a day, 
and a head of cabbage is hung in the pen for them to peck at. The bottom 
of this pen is covered with dry sand and ashes, with a pile of old mortar and 
bi-oken oyster shells to be picked over. 

"For a water fountain I use a small tin pan, covering with a stone all the 
top except just enough to allow the chicks to drink, as shown at Fig. 2. Turn 
the open part next to the wall, so the little things cannot scratch dirt into it. 
Chicks are very fond of scratcliing the feed out of the pan. To prevent this 
I take a sheet of tin (Fig. 3), bend it over, and put the feed under the bent 
part. This prevents their treading on or scratchuig out the feed, and caters 
to their natural taste for hunting under things for food. It is also cleaned 
more readily than a pan. 

" The body of the brooder (Fig. 4) is made of zinc, with an air-chamber 

over and under the back 
end. The lamp setting under 
it sends the heat up through 
the heater and out through 
the top, where a nursery for 
young or sick chicks is 
placed to utilize the waste 
heat. This form of brooder, 
with a warm chamber and 
the chicks feeding in the 
open air, I believe to be bet- 
ter than those where the 
chicks are never subjected 
to a cool atmosphere. The 
short stay while they feed in 
the open air tends to harden 
invigorate them. All 
boxes, or pens, 
leep large numbers 
in, should have the 
bottom lined with zinc, as 
wood or earth is sure in time 
to become saturated with 
excrement, no matter how 
clean you try to keep it, and 
it is the ammonia arising from these tainted floors that causes such pens 
in time to prove fatal to the chicks. I promised to tell the truth 
about my experience in hatching the eggs, and here it is: The 
last eggs that hatched out were bought October 10th. Up to that time I 
had purchased one hundred and five eggs at thirty cents a dozen. 
About one-third of these proved unfertile, and were cooked and eaten, or 
hard-boiled and fed to the young chicks, leaving about seventy-five eggs for 
the incubator to work on. Out of these I now have twenty-seven as fine 
chicks as I ever saw. By my own awkwardness and want of experience, I 
have killed or lost fully one dozen. My machine was an old one, and the 
battery was worn out. The gauge never was worth a cent. All the defect- 
ive parts have been renewed except the gauge, and I have learned to doctor 
that. Owing to the above faults, the temperature in the oven has run to» 
\yf for days at a time, and for hours it has been at 82 degrees, while it ha* 




BROODER.— FIG. 4. 



THE POULTRY YABD^ 



801 




taken short trips as high as 110 degrees. The only wonder is that I got a 
chicken out of any of the eggs. It is astonishing how much an egg will stand. 

" From my experience 
with hens I am satisfied I 
will be able to get more 
chicks from a given num- 
ber of eggs with the incu- 
bator than I ever could with 
hens. It would be a poor 
hand who could not raise 
from a fourth to a third 
more chicks with brooders 
than with the best hens." 

Packing Eggs for 

Marltet—We present here- 
with three different styles 

or methods of packing eggs 

for shipment or for storage, 

any one of which will be 

found simple, inexpensive 

and practical. 

Our illustration, Fig. 1, 

represents a substantial 

carrying case, with nine 

drawers, the frames of 

which are of wood covered 

with canvas or sacking, 

with cords or strings underneath, for the purpose of keeping the eggs in 

their places. The sacks, at the top and^ bottom, have depressions, as 

shown in the cover of the engraving, so that the eggs fit snugly and are not 

liable to be displaced 
by handling or trans- 
porting. Each alternating 
layer, coming between these 
depressions in each box or 
drawer, fills up the inter- 
s t i c e 8 perfectly. With 
proper care these cases will 
last for years, are always 
ready for packing and can 
be filled as the eggs are laid, 
thus avoiding repeated 
handling. The eggs can 
also be kept in them per- 
fectly secure when the 
owner desires to hold his 
stock for better market. 
There are nine layers or 
drawers of eggs in this box, 

each layer containing eight dozen, or a total of seventy-two dozen of eggs. 
Fig. 2. shows a cheaper case iu every respect. It is a common packing 

boxj ma4e with paste or binders' board partitions, and each layer of eggs is 



FIG. 1. — OANTAS COVEKED CASE. 




FIG. 2. — COMMON TRANSPORTING CASE. 



202 



THE FARM. 



covered with the same material. One point connected with packing in these 
boxes the shipper should know and guard against; that is, it is sometimes 
the case that the pasteboard cover, on which the eggs are placed, is com- 
posed of two pieces, and during transporting or handling these pieces be- 
come displaced, or pass each other; then the eggs above drop down on the 
lower ones and break them. This difficulty, however, can easily be avoided 
by passing a piece of stiff paper over the joints, which Avill prevent them 
l^assing each other. Any sized box desired can be used for this style of case, 
and, with a little care on the part of the packer of the eggs, can be carried as 
safely as Avith any of the patent boxes now in vague. 

Fig. 3 consists of an outside case or crate, in which are fitted a number of 
trays with cord laced through the sides and ends, dividing the spaces into 
small squares or meshes, and making a dehcate spring, which responds to 
the slightest jar. Rows of pockets are suspended from the cord work, giv- 
ing to each a separate apartment, and so arranged that no jar nor jolt the 

carrier may receive can 
cause one egg to strike an- 
other, and being thus sepa- 
rated, a free circulation of 
air is obtained, which pre- 
vents heating by any pos- 
sibility. Each tray is pro- 
vided with a protector, 
which keeps the eggs in the 
pocket even though the car- 
rier be overturned. As each 
tray contains a certain 
number, no errors in count 
can ever occiir, and the pur- 
chaser can determine at a 
glance both the number and 
quality of the eggs. By 
using this carrier a child 
can pack as Avell as a man. 
One of these carriers, the size shown, will hold six:ty dozen of eggs. 

Milk for Hens. — Fanny Field thus expresses herself as to the food value 
of milk for hens: " I quite agree with the correspondent of the American 
Povliry Yard, who declares there is no feed on earth so good for fowls and 
chicks as milk in some form. For very young chicks we make the clabbered 
milk into Dutch cheese, and use the whey to mix feed for other fowls and 
chickens. From the time they are a week old till sent to market for broilers, 
our early chicks have all the milk, sweet or sour, or buttermilk, that they 
can drink. If the home supply of milk falls short of the demand, we buy 
skim milk at two cents a quart, and consider it cheap at that. For laying 
hens in winter there is nothing better than a liberal supply of milk. A pan 
of Avarm milk, Avith a dash of pepper in it, every morning, Avill do more 
toward inducing hens to lay in cold Aveather than all the egg-food in crea- 
tion. For fattening fowls, Ave find that boiled vegetables mixed Avith milk 
and barley or cornmeal Avill put on flesh at an astonishing rate. Don't be 
afraid to give milk to foAvls or chicks; from the time when the chicks are 
given the first feed up to within the last day of the old fowl's life, milk may 
be safely and profitably given," 




. — SUSPENSION EGG CABKIER. 



THE P irL TB Y YARD. 20:^ 

Poultry ICeeping for Profit—During the year 1884, Mr. Heury Stewart 
contributed to the New York Times a series of articles containing many 
valuable suggestions for those who wish to make poultry-keeping a busi- 
ness. His plan is briefly as follows: Each yard is to consist of a plot of 
ground about lUOxiOO feet, containing nearly one acre, with a suitable 
fence. The house is placed in the center of the yard and a cross-fence on a 
line with the house divides it into two parts. These two parts are alter- 
nately sown thickly with some crop that will afford forage for the fowls. Iii 
September they are placed on one side sown thickly with turnips. The 
other is immediately plowed up and sown with rye. The fowls will do very 
well for the winter in one side, with an occasional day in the green rye. In 
November wheat is sown, after the turnips are eaten off. In April we may 
sow oats, in May corn, in June rape or mustard seed and in July begin the 
rotation again with rutabagas. 

As a rule a house twenty-five feet long, ten feet wide, eight feet high in 
the front and five feet in the rear, will be quite large enough for the one 
hundred fowls to be kept in each yard. This shoxild be cleaned at least 
once a week, the oftener the better. The inside walls are quite smooth, hav- 
ing no fixtures except the roosting poles, which are on a level one foot from 
the gi-ound. This leaves no harbor for vermin. The nests are loose boxes. 
Mr. Stewart also suggests that where a series of yards are kept, the inside 
fences may be movable, so that while the fowls are all confined to one side, 
the fences may be removed from the other, thus facilitating the plowing and 
planting. 

"It is evident," he adds, " that this system will greatly enrich the soil, 
and this may be turned to good account by raising fruit trees in the poultry 
yards. No other fi-uit crop pays so well as plums, but none is so hard to 
gi-ow on account of the pestiferous curculio. But when plums are grown in 
a poultry yard this insect has no chance. The shai-p eyes of the fowls let no 
rogue escape, and one can raise plums with success and jDrofit. As 200 of 
these trees can be planted on one acre, there is a possibility of $400 per acre 
from the fruit as Avell as $200 from the fowls; for every hen Avell cared for 
should make a clear profit of two dollars in the year. The yards may be 
planted with dwarf pear trees, with equal profit or more, because 300 of them 
may be placed on one acre. The shade of these trees is invaluable." It is 
also recommended that a row or small grove of Norway Spruce, Arbor-vita3 
or Austrian pine be planted each side of the house to serve as a wind break 
for the fowls in winter. 

Raising CliickeiLs by Artificial Mothers. — Mr. E. S. Renwick writes 
from a large experience upon the above subject, in the Arne^'ican Agricul- 
fxrisf. He says: 

When a fancier raises forty or fifty chickens a year, as amusement, the 
amoiint of care which he gives them is never taken into account; but if the 
number of chickens be increased to several hiindreds, some means must be 
provided by which so large a number can be taken care of Avithout too much 
labor. For supplying wannth and protection to young chickens, various 
" artificial mothers," or " brooders," have been devised. Those in the mar- 
ket are well enough adapted to the raising of a small number of chickens of 
nearly the same age, but it becomes a difficult matter when from two hun- 
dred and fifty to five hundred are to be raised, and of all ages, from those 
just hatched to those large enough for broilers. Young chickens must have 
plenty of air, exercise and wholesome gi-een food; and means of protection 



iU 



THE FARM. 



against injury must be provided. Where young chickens of different ages 
are together, the elder tyrannize over the younger, the newly-hatched 
chickens being frequently trampled to death, or are driven aVay from 
their food by the stronger. Young chickens are very often lost in the grass 
when at liberty, and are frequently wet and chOled. Hence, to successfully 
raise a largo number of chickens by hand, various means must be provided 
by which those of different ages can be separated, and by which the chickens 
can be protected and at the same time have sufficient liberty for exercise 
and development in the open air. 

A Rustic Poultry House. — The rustic poultry house here illustrated is 
not only convenient, but designed to beautify the poultry yard of any ama- 
teur or breeder. For the rustic work, join four pieces of sapling in an ob- 
long shape for sills; confine them to the ground; erect at the middle of each 
of the two ends a forked post, of suitable height, in order to make the sides 
quite steep; join these with a ridge pole; put on any rough or old boards 

from the apex down to the 
ground; then cover it with 
bark, cut in rough pieces, 
from half to a foot square, 
laid on and confined in the 
same manner as ordinary 
shingles; fix the back end 
in the same way; and the 
front can be latticed with 
little poles, with the bark 
on, arranged diamond fash- 
ion, as shown in the en- 
gi*aving. The door can be 
made in any style of rustic 
form. The roosts, laying 
and setting boxes can be 
placed inside of the house, 
in almost any position, 
either lengthwise or in the 
rear. From the directions hero given one can easily build a house of any 
desired size, and in any location in the poultry yard he Avishes; but to make 
the rusticity of the Louse show off to the best advantage it should be placed 
amid shrubbery. 

The Hatching Period. — Setting hens should have a daily run. Do not 
remove them forcibly from their nests, but let the door be open every day at 
a given hour for a certain time while the attendant is about. Perhaps for 
the first day or two you may have to take them gently off their nests, and 
deposit them on the ground outside the door. They will soon, however, 
learn the habit and come out when the door is open, eat, drink, have a dust- 
bath and return to their nests. 

While hens are off their nests some people dampen the eggs Avith luke- 
warm water. It is claimed that moisture is necessary, and that the chicks 
gain strength by the process. This may be correct, and in very dry weather, 
perhaps, necessary. It is generally, however, a mistake to meddle too much 
with nest or eggs; the hen is only made restless and dissatisfied by so doing. 
While the egga are hatching out it is best not to touch the nests. It is very 




A RUSTIC POULTRY HOUSE. 



TH E POU L T RY YARD. 203* 

fooliah to luss the old bird and make her angry, as she may tread ou the 
eggs in her fury, and crush the chicks when thoy are in the most delicate 
stage of hatching. 

Picking off the shell to help the imprisoned chick is always a more or less 
hazardous proceeding, and should never be had rec^ourse to unless the egg 
has been what is termed " billed " for a long time, in which case the chick is 
probably a weakly one and may need a little help, which must be given with 
the greatesttcaution, in order that the tender membranes of the skin shall not 
be lacerated. A little help should be given at a time, every two or three 
honrs; but if any blood is perceived stop at once, as it is a proof that the 
chick is not quite ready to be liberated. If, on the contrary, the minute 
blood vessels which are spread all over the interior of the shell are blood- 
less, then you may be sure the chick is in some way stuck to the shell by its 
feathers, or is too weakly to get out of its prison-house. 

The old egg shells should l)e removed from under the hen, but do not 
take away her chicks from her one by one as they hatch out, as is very often 
advised, for it only makes her very uneasy, and the natural warmth of her 
body is far better for them at that early stage than artiticial heat. Should 
only a few chicks hav.e been hatched out of the sitting, and the other re- 
maining eggs show no signs of life when examined, no sounds of the Httle 
birds inside, then the water test should be tried. Get a basin of warm water, 
not really hot, and put those eggs about which you do not feel certain into 
it. If they contain chicks they will float on the top, if they move or dance 
the chicks are alive, but if they float without movement the inmates will 
most likely be dead. If they (the eggs) are rotten they will sink to the bot- 
tom. Put the floating ones back under the hen, and if, on carefully break- 
ing the others, you find the test is correct (one puncture mil be sufficient to 
tell you this), bury them at once. 

Chickens should never be set free from their shells in a hurry, because it 
is necessary for their well-being that they should have taken in all the yelk, 
for that serves them as food for twenty-four hours after they see the hght, 
so no apprehension need be felt if they do not eat during that period, if they 
seem quite strong, gain their feet, and theii- little downy plumage spreads 
out and dries properly. Their best place is under the hen for the time 
named. 

When all are hatched, cleanse the nest completely, and well dredge the 
hen's body with sulphur i)owder; give her the chicks, and place chopped 
egg and bread-crumbs within reach. The less they are disturbed during 
the first two or three days the better. Warmth is essential, and a constantly 
brooding hen is a better mother than one which fusses the infant chicks 
about and keeps calling them to feed. Pen the hen in a coop and let the 
chicks have free egress. The best place to stand the coops is under shel- 
tered runs, guarded from cold winds, the ground dry, and deep in sand and 
mortar siftings. Further warmth is unnecessary if the mothers are good; 
and if the roof is of glass, so as to secure every ray of sun, so much the 
better. Cleanliness of coops, beds, flooring, water vessels and flood tins 
must be a^jsolute. The oftener the chicks are fed the better, but food must 
never be left; water must be made safe, or death from drowning and chills 
may be expected. The moment weather permits, free range on grass for 
several hours daily is desirable, but shelter should always be at hand. 

Packing Poultry for Market — All poultry should be thoroughly 
cooled and dried before packing, preparatory for shipment to market. For 



*i06 



Tim FARM. 




PACKING POULTRY. — FIG. 1. 



packing the fowl provide boxes, as they are greatly preferable to barrels. 
Commence your packing by placing a layer of rye straw, that has been 
thoroughly cleaned from dust, on the bottom of the box. Bend the head of 
the first fowl under it, as shown in our illustration (Fig. 1), and then lay it 
in the left hand corner, with the head against the end of the box, with the 
back up. Continue to fill this row in the same manner until completed; 
then begin the second row the same way, letting the head of the bird pass up 
between the rump of the two adjoining ones, which will make it complete and 

sohd (see illustration, Fig. 
2). In packing the last 
row, reverse the order, 
placing the head against the 
end of the box, letting the 
feet pass under each other. 
Lastly, fill tight with straw, 
so that the poultry cannot 
move. This gives a firmness 
in packing that will prevent moving during transportation. Care should be 
taken to have the box filled full. 

PoulU-y Raising as a Business — Mr. P. H. Jacobs, a practical poul- 
try man, writes as follows in the American Agriculturist: A flock often hens 
can be comfortably kept in a yard twenty feet wide by fifty deep. An acre 
of ground will contain forty such yards, or four hundred hens. No cocks 
are necessary unless the eggs are desired for incul)ation. To estimate $1.50 
as a clear profit for each hen, is not the maximum limit, but the profit 
accrues according to the management given. Poultry thrives best when 
running at large, but this applies only to small flocks. Hens kept by the 

hundred become too crowded 

while at large, no matter how 
wide the range, and sickness and 
loss occur. Large flocks must be 
divided, and the size of the 
yard required for a flock is of 
but little importance compared 
with that of the management. 
There is much profit to be de- 
rived fi-om the sale of young 
chicks— and, where one pays 
attention to the business— they 
receive the greatest care. Each 
brood, like the adult, is kept 
separate from the others in a 

little coop, which prevents quarreling among the hens, and enables the 
manager to count and know all about the chicks. This is very important, as 
there are many farmers who hatch scores of broods and yet cannot tell what 
became of two-thirds of them. Hawks, crows, cats, rats, and other depreda- 
tors take their choice, and the owners are no wiser. Each setting hen should 
be in a coop by herself, and each coop should have a lath run. The critical 
period is the forming of the feathers, which calls for frequent feeding, and 
when they have passed that stage, the chicks become hardy. The houses 
need not be more than eight feet square for each family, and can be doubled. 
If possible, it is best to have changeable yards, but, if used, a less number 



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PACKING POULTRY. — FIG. 2. 



THE POULTRY YARD. 207 

can be kept to an acre. If the yards are kept clean by an occaHional spading, 
however, green stuff may be grown elsewhere and thrown over to them. 
This may consist of cabbage, grass, turnip tops, kale, mustard, lettuce, etc. 
Watering must not be neglected, or the meals given irregularly. Care must 
be observed not to teed too much, as over-fat fowls will lay few eggs, and 
such eggs will not hatch. A good poultry manager is always among his 
fowls, and observes everything. The breeds have special characteristics 
also. The large fowls must be hatched in March, if early pullets are desired 
for winter laying. This applies to Brahmas, Cochins and Plymouth Rocks. 
If the manager finds this impossible, Jie should at once substitute cocks of 
the Leghorn breed, which crossed with large hens, make good marketable 
chicks, and produce pullets that mature early. A knowledge of the charac- 
teristics of the several breeds is indispensable to success. Crossing pure- 
bred cocks with common hens is excellent, but "fancy poultry "is not 
profitable to any but those who understand thoroughly the mating and 
selection of the several breeds. 

Poultry on a liarge Scale. — People thinking of raising chickens on a 
large scale will do well to note the following sound advice by the FoiiUry 

Mouthly: 

" There are many persons of moderate means who have had perhaps some 
Uttle experience with breeding poultry, and who get to wondering if it will 
pay to breed poultry on a large scale; whether it will pay to embark in the 
breeding of poultry for market purposes as a business, and if it is good policy 
to give up a fair paying clerkship or small business to engage in it. Such 
questions are very difficult to determine to the satisfaction of all persons 
concerned, for much more really depends on the person than on the business 
in nearly every department of human industry, and where one person may 
make a success of any undertaking another one may fail, though having 
started with equally as good chances of success. Poultiy, to be successful 
on a large scale, must be kept in small colonies of about fifty birds each, for 
many more than that number in a single house is apt to cause sickness or 
disease, ere long, among them. Small flocks like that can be given better 
attention than larger ones, and the first approach of disorder can be seen 
readily and promptly checked, while there is less danger of great loss when 
thus kept in small flocks, as the trouble can usually be confined to the flock 
in which it started by proper and prompt sanitaiy measures. When the 
breeder is not too far away from large retail markets, and especially where 
the breeder can market them himself, thus saving commission, freight, and 
loss, it pays best to breed and keep poultry for the eggs they produce, as 
eggs known to be strictly fresh are always in good demand at quite an in- 
crease in price over that received for the ordinary " store " eggs. Such 
breeds as the white and the brown Leghorns, and birds bred from them, 
either pure breed or cross breed or grade, as a basis, are first-class egg pro- 
ducers, while a game cock is also valuable to breed to good common hens, 
producing, as a rule, vigorous, active pullets, which are invariably good 
layers. Those who wish to raise poultry principally for the flesh should 
raise the light Brahmas, Plymouth Rocks, dark Brahmas, or some of the 
Cochin breeds, the first two named, however, being general favoi*ites in this 
respect, and also combining with it good laying qualities under favorable 
circumstances. Those who cannot or will not give the poultry regular or 
constant attention, shelter them properly, supply proper food in liberal 
quantities and at frequent and regular yitervala, and pay a strict attention 



208 



THE FARM. 




FIG. 1.— FEEDING HOPPEK, 



to cleanliness and thoroughness in all the details of the management, need 
not expect even to succeed, not to even consider the question of loss or 
jjrofits, for success and profit here means work, work, work." 

Feeclimg Hoppers for Fowls. — We give herewith designs for two styles 

of feeding hoppers for fowls, 
deeming anything that has a 
tendency toward economy 
will be beneficial to the 
farmer as well as to the 
amateur breeder of fowls. 

The illustration. Fig. 1, 
represents a veiy good and 
easily constructed hopper, 
that can be made to contain 
any quantity of corn re- 
quired, and none wasted. 
"WTien once filled it requires 
no more trouble, as the 
grain falls into the receiver 
below as the fowls pick it 
away, and the covei's on that 
which are opened by the 

perches, and the cover on the top, protect the grain from rain, so that the 

fowls always get it quite dry; and as nothing less than the weight of a fowl 

on the perch can lift the cover on the lower receiver, rats and mice are 

excluded. 

Our illustration. Fig. 2, represents " a perfect feeding liopper," Avhich, 

from the description here 

given, can be easily con- 
structed by any person. A is 

an end view, eight inches wide, 

two feet six inches high, and 

three feet long; B, the roof pro- 
jecting over the perch on which 

the fowls stand while feeding; 

C, the lid of the receiving 

manger raised, exhibiting the 

grain; E, E, cords attached to 

the perch and lid of the manger 

or feeding trough; I, end bar 

of the perch, -ndth a weight 

attached to the end to balance 

the lid, otherwise it would not 

close when the fowls leave the 

perch; H, pully; G, fulcrum. 

The hinges on the top show 

that it is to be raised when 

the hopper is to be replenished. When a fowl desires food it hops upon 

the bars of the perch, the weight of which raises the lid of the feed box, 

exposing the grain to view, and after satisfying its hunger jumps off, and 

the lid closes. Of course the dimensions of either of these feeding hoppers 

may be increased to any size desirrjd, 




A PERFECT FEEDING HOPPER. 



T^E POULTRY YAn3. 200 

Winter Egg-Production — The following is from the Counby Gentle- 
man: To obtain a breed of fowls that are perpetual layers is the object 
that many aim at. This is an impossibility, for nature will exhaust itself 
and must have a period of rest. In order that Ave have a perpetual produc- 
tion of fresh eggs, the busmess must be arranged beforehand. There is a 
diflference in breeds, some laying better than others at any time of the year, 
and others, again, giving their eggs in winter. There is httle difficulty in 
obtaining eggs in summer, but the winter eggs must be worked for, and the 
fowls managed beforehand. Hens that have laid well during the summer 
cannot be depended on for late fall or early winter, even if well fed, but will 
generally commence in January, and keep it up throughout February and 
March, giving a good supply of eggs if not too old. But it is better not to 
allow such birds to go into the winter. They are generally fat, after having 
finished the annual moult, and should be killed for the table. After the 
second annual moult hens are apt to become egg-bound, especially if well 
fed and fat. The excess of fat that accumulates about the lower intestines 
and ovaries Aveakens these organs and renders them incapable of performing 
their offices. Hence the fowl suffers and becomes profitless. When left too 
long the bird becomes feverish and the flesh is unfit for food. The better 
way is to avoid this ti'ouble, since there is no cure, by not allowing the birds 
to go into the second winter. Trouble of this kind seldom occurs with 
pullets or young hens.' 

To obtain a supply of winter eggs, we must have the chicks out in March 
or April. Leghorns and some of the smaller breeds will do in May or the 
first of June, but the Brahmas and Cochins must come off early, that they 
may have the full season for growth. The Asiastics are generally good 
layers in winter, and need less artificial heat, as nature has not furnished 
them with any ornamental appendages which suff"er by exposure to frost. 
For them it is not necessary to spend large sums in warm buildings. What 
they can dispense Avith in this respect they demand in feed, which must be 
given regularly. The feed must be kept up and varied with animal and 
vegetable diet. The supply of Avater must never fail. We must feed and 
feed a long time before the eggs will come. Any breed of hens will con- 
sume an enormous quantity of feed before commencing to lay, but after 
having once begun they will not require, or even take so much grain. When 
laying, their great craving is for vegetable and animal substances, and 
crushed clam or oyster shells. 

Fowls that are regularly trained have certain portions of the day for their 
different feeds. My birds require their shells at night, as well as their 
greens, and their grain in the morning, and ahvays fresh water. When one 
has the time and convenience, and enjoys the petting of foAvls, making warm 
stews on very cold days is an admirable plan, and the birds relish them 
marvelously. Take beef or pork scraps, and put into an old kettle, having 
them previously chopped fine, and fill it half full of water. While stewing, 
throw in a dozen chopped onions, tAvo dozen cayenne peppers, and the day's 
coffee and tea-grounds. Thicken the mixture Avith cornmeal, and serve it 
around among the hens hot. They relish it amazingly Avhen once taught to 
eat it, and will look for the ration daily at the certain time. On cold winter 
days give this feed between tAvo and three o'clock in the afternoon, and the 
chicks get their crops warmed wp for the coming cold at night. If scraps are 
not handy, boil unpeeled potatoes, and serve in the same manner, adding a 
little grease or cold gravies left over from yesterday's dinner. 

The combed varieties reqiiire Avarmer quarters and sunnier exposure 



210 



'THE FARM. 




CHICKEN COOP.— FIG. 1. 



than the Asiatics, and are good winter layers after December and early 
January. They will lay in the fall if early hatched, but the change of fall to 
winter, and the getting into winter quarters affects them, and they seldom 
commence again before the days begm to lengthen, at which time Brahmas 
will cease egg-production and become broody. Where one has the con- 
venience it is well to keep both kinds, in order to insure a supply of eggs. It 
is useless to expect many eggs from old fowls of any variety. Have the 
buildings ready early, and the fowls of the right age and in condition to 
insure success. The business of our domestic hen is to produce eggs, and 

we must feed her for it. 

A ClxickeiL Coop. — 

Nail short pieces of 
matched boards together 
as indicated in the cut; 
then board up the rear 
end tightly, and nail nar- 
row strips of boards or lath 
in front; put a floor of 
boards in the back part of 
the coop, large enough for the hen to brood her young upon, and lay a wide 
board in front to feed upon, as long as the width of the coop. The coop 
should be at least two feet high, and from two to three'feet deep. The board 
in front may be tunied up at night to prevent the young against rats, cats, 
etc., and should remain in the morning until the dew is off from the grass. 
The coop should be moved eveiy two or three days to a clean place. The 
second engraving shows a coop of another construction, the tight apartment 
at the end with a slide door to let down every evening, keeps the little 
inmates secure from all enemies. A few auger holes must be made for ven- 
tilation. The front is a 
simple frame, with lath 
attached at sufficient dis- 
tances to allow the chickens 
to pass through. The top 
should be made separate, 
and attached to the side by 
leather hinges. 

Feeding and Laying. 

— The best of feed some- 
times fails to induce the hens 
to lay. This is not because 
the fowls do not get enough, 

but because it is not the kind they desire. It may be feed consisting of 
everything that serves to satisfy the demand for egg material, and yet no 
eggs will be the result. There are several caiases for these complaints, one 
of the principal being the fact that a plentiful supply of pure fresh water is 
not always within reach, and unless water is plentiful the fowls will not lay. 
Water being the principal substance in an egg, it cannot be limited. Unless 
the water can be procured for the egg the fowl cannot lay. And in cold 
weather it must be so situated as to be either protected from freezing or else 
have a little warm water added to it occasionally. Now this is a trouble- 
some job in vrinter, but water will freeze on cold days, and consequently is 




CHICKEN COOP. — no. 2. 



THE PorLTJiY YARD. 211 

neeleee to the fowls when in a frozen conrlition. The feed, however, even 
when of the best qualitj', may not give satisfaction. In that case, when no 
eggs are being derived, change it entirely for three or four days. Give 
something entirely different in the moi'ning from that previously given, even 
if inferior, but still give whole grains at night in cold weather, for then the 
fowls go on the roost early in the evening, and have to remain in the coops 
until daylight, which is nearly thirteen hours, and so long a period demands 
the solid food in order to keep them Avarm during the long cold nights. 
Whole corn and wheat is best for them then, but in the morning any kind of 
mixed soft food makes a good meal for a change. The changes can be made 
by using good clover hay, steeped in wami water, after being chopped fine, 
shghtly sprinkled with meal, and fed w'arm, which will be very acceptable. 
A few onions chopped fine will also be highly relished. Parched ground 
oats or parched cracked corn is a splendid change of food for a few days 
from the ordinary routine of every day. It stimulates them if fed warm, and 
is a good corrective of bowel complaints, especially if some of the grains 
are parched till burned. The matter of feeding is to give variety, and if the 
food is of good quality also, a good supply of eggs may be expected at all 
times, but with good quarters and plenty of water the prospects will be 
better. 

Successful Poultry Raising. — Mr. Charles Lyman, a successful raiser 
of poultry, writes as follows: In raising poultry or stock of any kind, it 
should be the aim of every one to keep it healthy and improve it. You can 
do it very easily by adopting some systematic rules. These may be summed 
up in brief, as follows: 

1. Construct your house good and warm, so as to avoid damp floors, and 
afford a flood of sunlight. Sunshine is better than medicine. 

2. Provide a dusting and scratching place where you can biiry wheat and 
corn and thus induce the fowls to take the needful exercise. 

3. Provide yourself with some good, healthy chickens, none to be over 
three or four years old, giving one cock to every twelve hens. 

4. Give plenty of fresh air at all times, especially in summer. 

5. Give plenty of fresh water daily, and never allow the fowls to go 
thirsty. 

6. Feed them systematically two or three times a day; scatter the food so 
thny can't eat too fast, or without proper exercise. Do not feed more than 
they will eat up clean, or they will get tired of that kind of feed, 

7. Give them a variety of both dry and cooked feed; a mixture of cooked 
meat and vegetables is an excellent thing for their morning meal. 

8. Give soft feed in the morning, and the whole grain at night, except a 
little wheat or cracked corn placed in the scratching places to give them 
exercise during the day. 

9. Above all things keep the hen house clean and well ventilated. 

10. Do not crowd too many in one house. If you do, look out for disease. 

11. Use carbolic powder occasionally in the dusting bins to destroy lice. 

12. Wash your roosts and bottom of laying nests, and whitewash onoe a 
week in summer, and once a month in winter. 

13. Let the old and young have as large a range as possible — the larger 
the better, 

lA. Don't breed too many kinds of fowls at the same time, iiulees you 
are going into the business. Three or four will give yoti your hatide 
full. 



212 THE FARM, 

15. Introduce new blood into your stock every year or so, by either buy- 
ing a cockerel or settings of eggs irom some reliable breeder. 

16. In buying birds or eggs, go to some reliable breeder who has his 
reputation at stake. You may have to pay a little more for birds, but you 
can depend on what you get. Culls are not cheap at any price. 

17. Save the best birds for next year's breeding, and send the others to 
market. In shipping fancy poiiltry to market send it dressed. 

Fisli for Powltry. — In preparing lish for fowls, we prefer to chop them 
up raw, add a very little salt and pepper, and feed in small quantities in 
conjunction with grain and vegetables; but for young chicks it is advisable 
to boil before feeding, and simply open the fish down the line of the back 
bone, leaving to the chicks the rest of the task. This food shall be given to 
layers sparingly, or we may perceive a fishy smell about the eggs, especially 
if the fish is fed raw. All who can will do well to try this diet for their 
flocks, and note its effect on egg production. We have always marked a 
decided increase in the rate of laying following an allowance of fish fed in 
moderate quantities. 

There are hundreds of our readers who live near or on rivers or lakes, or 
the sea shore, where they can get considerable oflfal fish, such as are either 
too small t<j market, or are cast out as unfit to be sold. Hundreds of bushels 
of these fish are annually used for manure, either composted or plowed in 
direct. In this connection they are very good, though many a basketful 
could be put to better account by feeding them to your fowls; and they are 
very fond of this diet, though care must be taken not to feed it exclusively, 
for it may cause extreme laxity. 

To Cure Pip. — This is a ti'oublesome and somewhat fatal complaint to 
which all domestic poultry are liable; it is also a very common one. Some 
writers say it is the result of cold; others, that is promoted by the use of bad 
water. But, whatever the cause, the disease is easily detected. Thei'e is a 
thickening of the membrane of the tongue, jiarticularly at the tip; also a 
difficulty in breathing; the beak is frequently held open, the tongue dry, the 
feathers of the head ruffled and the bird falls off in food; and if neglected, 
dies. The mode of cure which, if put in practice in time, is generally suc- 
cessful, is to remove the thickened membrane from the tongue with the 
nails of the forefinger and thumb. The process is not difficult, for the mem- 
brane is not adhesive. Then take a lump of butter, mix into it some strong 
Scotch snuflf, and put two or three large pills of this down the fowl's throat. 
Keep it from cold and damp, and it will soon recover. It may, perhaps, be 
necessary to repeat the snuff balls. Some Avriters recommend a mixture of 
butter, pepper, garlic, and sci'aped horseradish; but we believe the Scotgh 
snuflf to be the safest, as it is the most simple. 

Eggs and Pullets. — Unless you want a large proportion of cockerels do 
not sell all the largest eggs you can pick out. There are no means known by 
which the sex of eggs can with certainty be determined. Although many 
thought some sign indicated the sex, yet after repeated fair trials, all these 
indications have entirely failed with me, except the one which follows: With 
regard to the eggs of most of the feathered kingdom, if you pick the largest 
out of the nest, they are the ones that generally produce males, especially if 
they happen to be the fii-st laid. Even in a canary's nest it is noticeable that 
the first e^g laid is very often the largest, the young from it is the first out, 
keeps ahead of its comrades, is the first to quit the nest, and the first to sing. 



THE POULTRY YARD. 



218 



How to Produce Iiayers._Mr. L. Wright says: In every lot of hens 
some will be better layers than others. Let us suppose we start with six 
Houdans — a cock and five hens. Probably out of this five two may lay thirty 
eggs per annum more than either of the others; their eggs should be noticed 
and only these set. By following this for a few years a very great increase 
in egg production may be attained. My attention was drawn to this subject 
by a friend having a Brahma pullet which laid nearly three hundred eggs in 
one twelve-month, though valueless as a fancy bird, and the quality de- 
scended to several of her progeny; and I have since found other instances 
which prove conclusively that a vast improvement might easily be effected 
in nearly all our breeds were that careful selection of brood stocks made for 
this purpose which the fancier bestows on other objects. It is to be regretted 
more is not done in this way, and having more room than I had, I hope my- 
self to make some experiments in this direction shortly. I will say now that 
I am perfectly certain the number of two hundred eggs per annum might be 
attained in a few yeai-s with perfect ease were the object systematically 
sought; and I trust these few remarks may arouse a general attention to it 
among those who keep poultry for eggs only, and who can easily do all that 
is necessary without any 

knowledge Avhatever of / ^ € 

fancy points, or any attempt 
to breed exhibition birds. 

A Grain Chest for 
Fowls. — We illustrate an 
excellent grain chest for 
fowls. The trough (1), two 
inches high. The front of 
the chest extends down- 
ward no further than the 
top of the trough, thus 
leaving a free passage for 
grain from the chest into 
the trough. The dotted line (2) shoAvs the position of a board in the chest, 
placed there to conduct the grain into the trough as fast, as it is eaten out by 
the fowls. The platform (3) is for the fowls to stand upon while eating. It 
should not be wide enough to induce them to form a habit of sitting upon it. 
A board (4) is fastened to the front of the chest and extends over the trough 
to prevent filth from falling into it. The cover of the chest (5) should ex- 
tend a little over the front, that it may be handily raised, and should rest 
inclined to prevent fowls from roosting on it. An extension of the back of 
the chest (6), with two holes in it, is provided so that it may be hung on cor- 
responding wooden pins. If it is hung up in that way it will be necessary to 
put some kind of a key through each of the pins, to prevent its being jarred 
off fi-om them. It should be hung so that the platform will be at least two 
feet from the floor. It may be made any length. A square chest, for a post 
in the yard, can be made on the same principle. 

How to Fatten Turkeys — Nothing pays better to be sent to market in 
prime condition than the turkey crop. Many farmers do not understand 
this. Their turkeys grow on a limited range, getting little or no food at home 
through the summer, and if fed at all Avith regularity it is only for two or 
three weeks before killing. I see these lean, bony carcase es -in the local 




GEAES CHEST FOR FOWI^, 



211 THE FARM. 

markets every winter, and feel sorry for the owner's lues. They have re- 
ceived a small price for their birds and a still poorer price for the food fed 
out. The average life of a turkey id only seven months, and the true econ- 
omy of feeding is to give the chicks all they can digest from the shell to the 
slaughter. If they get all they can cat on the range, that is well. Usually 
this should be supplemented by regular rations when they come fi'om the 
roost in the morning and two or three hours before they go to roost at night. 
The food may be slack in the morning, so that they will go to the range with 
good appetites, and fuller at night. They should be put upon a regular 
course of fattening food as early as the middle of October, when you propose 
to kill the best birds at Thanksgiving. The younger and lighter birds should 
be reserved for the Christmas and New Year's markets. They continue 
growing quite rapidly until midwinter, and you Avill be ])aid for the longer 
feeding. There is nothing better for fattening than old corn, fed partly in 
tlie kernel and partly in cooked meal mashed up Avith boiled potatoes. Feed 
three times a day, giving the 'warm meal in the morning, and feeding in 
troughs with plenty of room, so that all the flock may have a chance. North- 
ern corn has more oil in it than Southern, and is worth more for turkey food. 
Use milk in fattening if yoii keep a dairy farm. Feed only so much as they 
will eat up clean. Cultivate the acquaintance of your turkeys as you feed 
them. No more charming sight greets your vision in the whole circle of a 
year than a large flock of bronze turkeys coming at call from their roosts on 
a frosty November morning. New corn is apt to make the bowels loose, and 
tliis should be guarded against. There is usually green food enough in the 
fields to meet their wants in the fall, and cabbage and turnips need not be 
added until winter sets in. If the bowels get loose give them scalded milk, 
which will generally correct the evil. Well-fattened and well-dressed tur- 
keys will bring two or three cents a pound more than smaller birds. It Avill 
not only be better for the purse, but for your manhood, to send nothing but 
finished products to the market. 

Preserving Eggs. — Several Practiced MetUods. — Several ways of 
preserving eggs are practiced. The object is to prevent evaporation from 
the egg. Cutting off the air from the contents of the egg i)reserve8 them 
longer than with any other treatment. An egg which has lain in bi-an even 
for a few days will smell and taste musty. Packed in lime eggs will be 
stained. Covered Avith a coat of spirit varnish eggs have kept so perfectly 
that after the lapse of two years chickens Avere hatched from them. A good 
egg will sink in a body of water; if stale, a body of air inside the shell Avill 
frequently cause it to float. When boiled, a fresh egg Avill adhere to the 
shell, which will have a rough exterior; if stale, the outside Avill be smooth 
and glassy. 

Looking through a paper tube directed toward the light, an egg held to 
the end of the t*ube will appear translucent if fresh; but if stale it Avill be 
dark — almost opaque. 

Spirit varnish for preserving eggs is made by dissolving gum shellac in 
enough alcohol to make a thin varnish. Coat each egg with this and pack. 
Little end doAvn, so that they cannot move, in bran, sawdust, or sand; the 
sand is best. Whatever is used for packing should be clean and dry. For 
preserving in lime, a pickle is made of the best stone lime, fine, clean salt 
and water enough to make a strong brine, usually sixty or sixty-five gallons 
of water, six ox eight quarts of salt, and a bushel of lime are used. The 
lime should he Blacked with a portion of the water, the salt and the re- 



THE FOUL TR Y YA RD. 215 

inainder of the water ia added. Stir at intervals, and when the pickle is 
cold and the sediment has settled, dip or draw the liquid off into the cask in 
Avhich the eggs are to be preserved. When only a few eggs are to be pickled 
a stone jar will answer. 

At the Birmingham Poultry Show, England, prizes were offered for the 
best dozen preserved eggs that had been kept two months. The eggs were 
tested by breaking one of each set competing for the prize into a clean saucer, 
also by boiling one of each lot. 

The eggs that had been preserved in lime-water, it was found on breaking 
them, presented cloudy whites. Eggs preserved by rubbing over with bees- 
wax and oil showed thin, watery whites. 

Eggs that stood best the test of boiling and which gained the first prize 
had been simply packed in common salt. These had lost little, if any, by 
evaporation, had good, consistent albumen, and were pleasant to the taste. 
The exhibit which took the second prize was served as follows: Melt one 
part of white wax to two parts of spermaceti, boil and mix thoroughly; or 
two parts claiified suet to one of wax and two of spermaceti. Take uew-laid 
eggs, rub with antiseptic salt and fine rice starch. Wrap each egg in fine 
tissue paper, putting the broad end downward; screw the paper tightly at 
the top, leaving an inch to hold it by. Dip each egg rapidly into the fat 
heated to 100 degrees. Withdraw and leave to cool. Pack broad end down- 
ward in dry, white sand or saAvdust. The judges were inclined to believe 
that had the trial been for a longer period than two months, this latter 
method would perhaps have proven the better of the two. The eggs were 
excellent, and on stripping off the waxed paper the shells presented the clean, 
fresh appearance of newly laid eggs. 

The following is a recipe for packing in salt: Cover the bottom of a keg, 
cask, jar, hogshead, or whatever you choose to pack in, with a layer of fine 
salt two inches de.ep; upon this place the eggs, small end down, and far 
enough apart so that they will not touch each other or the sides of the re- 
ceptacle; then put on another two inch layer of salt, then another layer of 
eggs, and so on until the package is full. This is the method that we used, 
and is on the whole the best method for housekeepers and for those who 
have only a small number to pack for market. The salt can be used over 
and over again. 

The foUoAving recipe is also given for keeping eggs: Put them in an open- 
work basket or colander and immerse them for a moment in boiling water; 
let them stay just long enough to form a film on the inside of the shell; this 
•excludes the air. Then place them in some convenient vessel, small end 
down, and set them in the coolest part of the cellar, where they will keep 
till wanted for use. 

Cheap Poultry Houses. — The following directions for building cheap 
poultry houses are clipped from W. H. Todd's descriptive catalogue: 

We find the best and most successful plan to manage and make fowls pay 
is to scatter them over a large range in fields and orchards. For this pur- 
pose cheap, convenient, and comfortable houses are best. My plan is to 
build 16 feet long and 8 feet wide, 7 1-2 front (facing south), and 4 1-2 back, 
boarded iipright and battened, with a shed roof, shingled. Sills are 2x4 
inch-plank halved together. Plates, same size. Rafters, 2x2. Lay the sills 
on sleepers, and on these lay a tight floor, which cover with dry earth 4 to 6 
inches deep, removing and renewing twice a year. This keeps foAvls dry, 
warm and healthy. Place an entrance door near one end, on the front, and 



ilB . THE FARM. 

fct least two windows of six 8x10 lights. Partition across the middle, with a 
door. Fix ventilators at the highest point in each end, sheathed to exclude 
etorm and wind. Erect roosts 20 inches high, for twenty fowls, with a mova- 
ble nest or two, and a box, partly filled with dust and ashes, and you are 
ready for " business." Forty large fowls can be accommodated and thrive 
well. Since the house is double we are in shape for running two breeding 
yards. Fence can be built cheaply with lath nailed upright to two 1-inch-thick 
pieces, the lower one 8 or 10 inches wide, and the upper about 2, 30 inches 
apart; the lath may be 3 inches apart, and a short piece 16 inches long, 
tacked to the bottom board, and to a light strip running lengthwise the 
panel. It is best to make this fence in panels about 12 feet long. Set a post 
whore they come together, and pass a wire around panels and post, fasten, 
and you have light, cheap, strong fences. The house can be made warmer 
if necessary by hning with tar-board sheathing. 

An Inexpensive Cliiclien Coop — A coiTCSpondent writes as follows: 
" Having made a good discovery, I am desirous of giving it to the people. 
Being engaged in raising chickens for profit, it was necessary to make cheap 
coops to keep them in for a few weeks. I take an old barrel and tack every 

hoop on eacli side of a seam 
between the staves with an 
inch wrought nail; after 
chnching the nail, I saw the 
hoops oft" on the seam. Then 
I spread the barrel open, as 
shown in the illustration, by 
cutting a board about twenty 
inches long for the back of 
the coop, and two small 
pieces to tack laths on for the front part. I have the upper section of the 
back fastened with leather hinges, so that I can open it at pleasure. Every- 
body has old barrels which are almost valueless, and the trouble and ex- 
pense of making a coop of this description is so small that it is not worth 
mentioning, while to buy the material and make a coop of the same size, it 
would cost about one dollar." 

Cliicken Cholera. — A New Jersey correspondent gives this remedy: 
Take of pulverized copperas, sulphur, alum, cayenne pepper and rosin, of 
each equal parts, and mix one teaspoonful in four quarts of meal. Give 
three days in succession, then once a week as a preventive. I have seen it 
used successfully. It will not cure those wluch have it, but Avill prevent 
spreading of the disease. For a disinfectant, use crude carbohc acid— one 
tablespoonful in one gallon of water. Spiinkle the hen house often, say 
about twice a week. 

Another correspondent says: I used a strong tea made of white oak bark, 
which I used in the drinking Avater as a preventive. When a fowl was taken 
sick I used it pure, giving several teaspoonfuls at a time, four or five times 
a day. I have taken fowls so far gone that they were past eating or drinking, 
and cured them in a few days Avith this simple remedy. As a disinfectant I 
use crude carbolic acid, pouiing it on a board in the chicken house and on 
the perches, coops, etc., or anywhere that the fowls frequent. If you will 
try this plan for awhile, removing all infected fowls from the flock, and keep 
the surroundings clean, I think yoii will soon get rid of the disease. 




AN INEXPENSIVE CHICKEN COOP. 



'THE ro II. 'I'H 1 YARD. 



21' 



The followiog prescription we find in the SoidJiern Cultivator, and it is 
said to be very efficacious in chicken cholera: Glycerine and water, each a 
half ounce; carbolic acid, ten drops. When the first symptoms of the dis- 
ease are apparent, give five drops, and repeat at intervals of twelve hours. 
Usually the second dose effects a cure. A neighbor informed me that cholera 
vvas very destructive among his poultry, and at my suggestion he tried the 
foregoing recipe. He reports that the progress of the disease was promptly 
arrested, and in almost every case a cure was accomplished. 

Infertile Kggs — There are many reasons why eggs hatch so poorly, 
when from pure bred stock, one of the greatest being want of stamina in the 
flock from which the eggs came, caused by being kept too closely confined. 
As a rule it is best to procure eggs for hatching from fowls which have free 
range, which is a great promoter of healthfulness, though there is no reason 
why eggs should not hatch Avell when from fowls in confinement, if those 
fowls are given good care, plenty of food, and have good sized yards to run 
in. Want of fertility may be duo 
to running too many hens to a 
cock; about ten hens of the Asia- 
tics (Brahmas and Cochins), and 
from ten to fifteen of the laying 
breeds (Leghorns, Hamburgs, 
etc.) to a cock being about the 
right number to secure good re- 
sults, other things being equal. 

A Clieap Cliiclteii Foun- 
tain. — Take an emptied tomato 
can, bend in the ragged edges 
where it has been opened, make 
a hole in the side one quarter of 
an inch from the edge, fill it 
with water, put a saucer on it, 
and quickly invert both. The 
water will then stand in the saucer constantly at the height of the hole. 
Chickens can drink, but cannot get in the water, which remains clean. 

Chicken Lice. — The first signs of lice are with the early setting hens. 
From their nests soon a whole house will be overrun with the pest. Chicks 
show the presence of lice very quickly, and lice are certain death to them 
if they are not protected. Have all nests movable, and change the contents 
frequently. With sitting hen's nests be sure to have the nest clean and the 
box and surroundings whitewashed before she is placed. Whitewash and the 
dust box are the surest preventives of lice. Put two or three coats of white- 
wash on every interior spot in the building; the lice harbor in the crevices 
of the rough sidings, and on the under side of the perches. Let the fowl 
house have a dust box. Mix hot ashes with the dust occasionally to dry it. 
Do all this early in the year, before spring laying and sitting. Kerosene and 
lard when applied is a sure cure, but they are too often dangerous in their 
effects. A little castor oil on the head and under the wings of sitting hens 
is very effective. Don't keep a brood hen in a little coop without a dust 
wallow. If you want your fowls to be free from lice you must keep their 
habitation clean. The best way to do that is by occasional change of the 
nest contents and a thoi-ough whitewashing of the apartment. 




A CHEAP CHICKEN FOUNTAIN. 



m THE FA MM. 

Raising Tnrkdys — The difficulty of raising turkeys is a serious draw- 
■back to the profits of the business, but the exercise of care will obviate the 
difficulty. At first, and for about six weeks, turkey chicks are very dehcate, 
80 much so that even a warm shower will finish them. If they can be kept 
alive for about two months they begin to assume a more robust character, 
and will soon become the very hardiest of poultry. The chicks, therefore, 
should be provided with shelter, and the shed which furnishes this would 
be all the better if it had a wooden floor. The best feed for the first week is 
hard boiled eggs, mixed with minced dandelion. It is thought the dande- 
lion serves to keep the bowels in order. At all events the young birds pre- 
fer dandelion to all other green food. At the end of the first Aveek add gradu- 
ally to the boiled eggs bread crumbs and barley meal, constantly lessening 
the amount of egg until at the end of three weeks it may be entirely discon- 
tinued. Now give boiled potatoes as a part of the food, and a small portion 
of some small grain may be added, in fact making the food very much like 
that of other poultry. If fed in this way and kept dry, they aviII come along 
all right. 

How to Raise Ducks— A writer who thinks unlimited water a bad thing 
for young ducks, recommends the following treatment for them: "Ducks 
are easily hatched, and, if properly managed, they are easily raised — much 
more bo than chickens or turkeys. Probably the worst thing for duckhngs 
is the first thing they usually receive, and that is iinlimited range and water 
to swim in. The little things are, in a measure, nude, and should be kept in 
pens with dry soil floors or stone pavements that can be washed down daily. 
No kind ot poultry will succeed on bare boards. All the water they need is 
best furnished by burning an old pot in the ground and laying a round piece 
of board on top cf the water with room for the ducks to stick their heads in 
and fish out the corn that is put in the water. This amuses them and does 
no harm, while, if allowed to go off to ponds or streams, they are very liable 
to fall a prey to vermin in some shape, or to get their bodies wet and chilled 
from remaining too long in the water. Their pens must be kept clean if they 
are expected to thrive. 

Gapes in Po^vls. — The parasite that causes gapes in fowls is of a red 
color and about three-quartei-s of an inch long. The remedies are numer- 
ous, but chiefly consist in removing the worms. One way is to moisten a 
feather from which all but the tip of the web has been stripped, with oil, 
salt water, or a weak solution of carbolic acid, introduce it into the wind- 
pipe, twist it around once or twice, and then withdraw it. A teaspoonful of 
sulphur mixed ^^dth a quart of corn meal and water, and fed to the fowls 
morning and evening, is also a good remedy. 

The Poultry Moj-Zi'/says: As soon as we discover any sj'mptonis of gapes 
among our chickens, we know that there are worms— very small red worms 
— in their Avindpipes, and Ave give them camphor in their drinking vessels 
strong enough to make quite a taste of the camphor. Then, if any get the 
disease quite badly before Ave discover it, Ave force a pill of gum camphor 
doAvn the throat, abotit the size of a small pea, and the fumes of that dose 
will kill the Avorms. No kind of worms can live in camphor; hence, camphor 
must be a poAverful vermifuge. 

A Connecticut poultry raiser writes: " Perhaps some who raise fowls Avill 
be interested in my experiment tried last season on a chicken with the gapes. 
I gave it about a quarter of a teaspoonful of kerosene, and as it seemed bet- 



Til E P O U L TJi Y YA R 1) . 219 

t^r for a day or two, I repeated the doHc, giving nearly one half a teaspoon- 
ful for the second time. The chicken was about the size of a robin at the 
time, but is now full-grown, weighing several pounds. I cured chickens 
affected with a disease we thought cholera, by giving powdered alum dis- 
solved in water." 



Ifs.—How Increased—If an increase of eggs be desired in the poul- 
try yard, before large sums are expended in the purchase of everlasting lay- 
ers, we would recommend the system of keeping no hens after the first, or at 
most, after the second year. Early pullets give the increase, and thoonly 
wonder is that people persist, as they do, in keeping up a stock of old hens, 
which lay one day and stop the next. In some parts of Europe it is the in- 
variable rule to keep the pullets only one year. Feeding will do a great 
deal— a surprising work indeed — in the production of eggs, but not when old 
hens are concerned; they may put on fat, but they cannot put down eggs. 
Their tale is told, their Avork is done; nothing remains to be done Avith them 
but to give them a smell of the kitchen fire, and the sooner they get that the 
better. 

Liate Cliickens. — Late chicks may be more profitable than early ones. 
Chickens from eggs set in August and September may be kept warm in a 
tight, glazed house, and fed so that they Avill grow continually through the 
Aviuter, and if they come later all the better, if they are Avell kept and fed. 
The early broods Avill be salable at good prices, when the market is bare of 
chickens, and the later ones A\'ill furnish spring chickens lung before tlie 
usual supply comes to hand. Spring chickens hatched in fall, or even in 
Avinter, are rare, but not entirely unknoAvn to a few persons- Avho made the 
discovery that AA'ith good feed, Avarm quarters, a Avarm mess at least once a 
day, Avarm drink and cleanUness, there is no difficulty at all about. raising 
them, and at a good profit. 

Cure for Scaly liCgs in Fo^vl. — A sure cure of scaly legs in foAvl is 
effected thus: Insert a feather in the spout of a coal oil can so that too large 
a stream will not run out; get some one to hold the foAvl by the A\'ings; take 
hold of a toe of one foot at a time, and pour a fine stream from the hock 
joipt to the end of each toe, taking care that all parts of the foot are wet with 
it. One application a year is enough, if done at all, and at the time AA^hen 
they need it, say during January or Febriiary. The scaly appearance is 
caused by an insect, Avhich the oil most effectually kills, and leaves the legs 
clear and bright looking. This will ansAver even Avhen the legs are tAAdce 
their natural size, which is frequently the case Avhen neglected. 

Roup. — Fowls exposed to dampness in severe AA'eather are apt to take 
cold, which often culminates in roup. The writer has cured this disease by 
injecting kerosene into the nostrils by the means of a bulb syringe, and then 
using it to gargle the throat. The latter is effected by holding the throat 
close enough to prevent swallowing, and, after the gargling, pouring the 
liquid otit on to the ground. Eepeat this once the next day; then feed with 
boiled rice and scalded milk, keeping water away for a few days. 

To Get Rid of Skunks. — To rid your poultry yard of skunks, purchase 
a few grains of Btrychnine, roll it up in a ball of lard, and then tlarow it at 
night outside the yard, Avhere the animals' tracks are seen. As they are 
A'ery fond of lard, they will sAvallov/ it quickly, and in the morning you will 



220 THE FARM 

find your enemy dead. But you must be careful to shut up the dogs and 
cats, as they are equally fond of lard. It is the easiest way to kill any ver- 
min, as they die very soon. Skunks will kill and eat full-grown ducks and 
hens, and suck their eggs, whenever they can gain entrance into the poultry- 
house. 

Road-dust for tlie Hennery. — Collect a few barrels of dry earth, road- 
dust, fine dry dirt in the cornfield or potato patch, or anywhere that is most 
conveuieut. This is a handy thing to have in the fall and winter for sprink- 
liag Tjuder the roosts and on the floor of ihQ poultry-house. It absorbs am- 
monia, keeps down smells, and keeps things ship-shape. It will pay to at- 
tend to this when it can be so easily done. It costs but little, and is a real 
advantage. 

Tlie Langi^lians. — There is a pt'ominent feature of the Langshans not 
possessed by the Black Cochins, which is activity. They come in as an ex- 
tra desirable breed, between the leghorns and the sitters, for they commence 
to lay early, and when about to enter upon incubation are easily broken. 
They are large in size, fine-boned, hardy, and grow rapidly. They are the 
strongest rivals for public favor that the Plymouth Rocks have, and are just 
as certain to go to the front as if they had been known for centuries. Their 
qualities as a farmer's fowl are good, and they will entirely supersede many 
other breeds iu time. 

Ponltry Manure. — Collect the droppings as often as possible, and com- 
post them Avith dry dirt. If dry dirt is inconvenient on account of the earth 
being frozen, use good ground laud plaster instead. The mixture of ground 
plaster and poultry droppmgs is better than either alone, and the ammonia 
is thereby saved. A good dusting of plaster over and under the roosts, and 
plentifully scattered all over the floor of the poultry house, conduces to the 
health of fowls and destroys foul odors. 

How Nests Should be Made—Eggs hatch much better if the nests are 
made by placing a cut turf, and shovel of mold, sand or ashes in the box or 
basket, and on this a little short sti'aw, than if straw only is used. In this 
way a convenient hollow is obtained that prevents the eggs rolling out from 
under the setting hen. Iu cool weather the eggs are thus kept of a much 
more equable temperature than in nests made simply of loose straw. 

To Fatten Geese. — To fatten geese, an expexienced practitioner says: 
Put up two or three in a darkened room and give each bird one pound of 
oats daily, thrown ou a pan of water. In fourteen days they will be found 
almost too fat. Never shut up a single bird, as geese are sociable and will 
pine away if left alone. 

Nests of Sawdust — To prevent hens from scratcliing their nests make 
the nests of saAvdust. Do not have the boxes too large— only long enough 
for two nests, with a partition. Place a little hay on the sawdust until the 
hens get accustomed to it; also sulphur, to prevent vermin. 

Hens Eating Eggs — If hens get into the habit of eating eggs, take 
enough bran and corn meal of equal parts for one feeding, and enough vine- 
gar warmed to make the meal wet enough for the hens to eat. Mix together 
and feed it to the hens. 



THE DAIRY. 



Apparatus for Milking— Absolute cleanlmesB iu milk is as much to 
be desired as in any other article of food. We fear that farmers and dairy- 
men, as a rule, do not give as 
much attention to this mat- 
ter as it really requires. We 
present herewith an illus- 
trated article on this subject 
from the pen of a practical 
dairyman, which we consider 
worthy of attention, and 
trust that many will profit by 
its suggestion: 

" Every reasonable person 
desires to have his or her 
food perfectly clean. Milk and 
dairy products are not always 
clean, to put it very mildly, 
and the filth that finds its way 
into milk is of a very dis- 
agreeable, if not unwhole- 
some, kind. As a large por- 
tion of the milk of a family 
coAv — and much of that sold 
—is used by children, owners 
of cows should be excessively 
careful to have the milk perfectly clean and pure. This is easy to be done 
if it is desired. It requires only the determination to do it, and a very 
little attention. The cow is not a cleanly 
animal, by any means, and some cows seem 
to delight in making themselves filthy. One of 
my best cows will take pains to lie down di- 
rectly in her droppings, so that the udder is 
always besmeared, and other cows are very 
careless about it, at the best, so that it is neces- 
sary that a part of every milking apparatus 
should consist of a pail of water, a sponge 
and towel. Before the cow is milked the udder 
should be washed and Aviped dry. For this 
purpose I have used a pail arranged as shown 
in the engraving (Fig. 1), which is taken 
to the bam at every milking. Previously the 
stable-man has brushed and carded the cows, 
and has cleaned and sanded or littered the 
floor, so that there is no coarse filth to remove, and only the remaining 
Bmeare. But if these are left on the teats, the filth will get into the pail in 




DAIRY FAIL.— FIG. 1. 




MILKING PAIL. 



222 



THE FAIiM, 




STllAINER.— FIG 



spite of all eflforte. The pail has a hook on one side upon which the sponge 
is carried, and a box on the other, in which an old towel or pieces of 
cloth are kept. With these the udder and teats are washed and dried before 
the cow is milked. The time used— not lost— is well spent. 

" The milking pail should be provided with a strainer, and I have found 
none made for sale free from some objection, 
either as regards the difficulty of cleaning or dura- 
bility. I have my pails made to order with the 
strainer upon the half cover of the pail at the edge, 
and with a lip at the edge to cause the milk to floAv 
easily. (See Fig. 2.) There is no difficulty in" 
Avashing this pail, the wire gauze cannot be broken 
in the washing, and it is perfectly cleaned Avith 
ease. Hairs cannot be kept out of milk at some 
seasons, and a fine hair carried lengtlnvise will 
pass through the finest wire cloth. It is therefore 
necessary to use precautions in straining. A hair 
will not pass through a cotton cloth, and in strain- 
ing milk into a deep pail I use the strainer slioAvn at 
Fig. 3, Avhich has a piece of Avashed, somcAvhat 
coarse and thin, Avhite muslin, fastened around 
the bottom hoop. This causes the milk to pass 
through thi-ee strainers at one time, Avhich is sufficient. Where the milk of 
several cows is strained, the strainer should be rinsed after each use, other- 
Avise the after milk passes over all the impurities gathered in the strainer. 
For shalloAv pans the double strainer. Fig. 4, is excellent. The middle 
strainer fits closely into the bottom of the basin over the fixed strainer, and 
the basin rests in the perforated hoop 
Avhich stands in the milk pan. A cloth 
may be tied over the top of the basin if 
tJiought proper. With all these precau- 
tions the most complete cleanliness is 
AA'ithin easy reach, and if the cow is 
healthy and Avell fed, the most fastidi- 
ous person may drink the milk Avithout 
any apprehension. While it is so easy 
to be clean the conscientious dairyman 
need have no excuse for violating pro- 
priety, and excuse himself by the idea 
that it can't be helped. 

"Every dairy utensil should be of 
tin. No Avooden vessel should be used 
in milking, as the wood absorbs the 
milk, which sours in the pores and there 
curdles, and every particle of curdled 
milk, Avhether effected by rennet or by 
acidity, like the leaven of yeast, is an 
active agent for souring other milk. As 

curd of milk is hardened by heat and made insoluble, dairy utensils eliould 
first be washed with cold water and soap, and Av^hen thoroughly well cleaned 
theymay then be scalded. Curd is dissolved by alkali, and the free alkali 
of tlie soap not only removes the grease of the milk, but also my particles oi 
milk wlach by an accident may have been retained .in a crevice or corner,-. 




DOUBLE BTRATNEB. 



THE DAIRY. 



m 



and there soured or curdled. To make the cleaning of dairy vessels more 
easy, it is well to have no sharp corners, but to have all the joints made 
round, and this may be done easily if one has the milk pails made to order." 

Millc Cooler There are quite a number of devices for this purpose, and 

some of them are too com- 
plicated, which must al- 
ways be a serious objection. 
Our engraving represents 
an EngHsh milk cooler, 
which is heartily commend- 
ed. In this apparatus a 
very small quantity of cold 
water, passing upward in a 
very thin stream between 
two corrugated sheets of 
metal, rapidly abstracts the 
heat from two shallow 
streams of milk descending 
oiitteide the metal sheets 
(Fig. 1). D is the inlet and 
F the outlet of the water, 
which, being supplied from 
a higher level, flows 
through the refrigerator 
(B) by the force of gravity. 
A tap of the milk receiver 
(A) regulates the flow of 
milk into a small trough at 
the top of the refrigerator, 
punctured with holes, 
through which the milk 
runs, and is spread into so 
fine a sheet that, instead of - 

falling rapidly from step to step, it follows the coj-rugations of the surface. 
In the enlarged section (Fig. 2) of a part of the refrigerator the descending 
arrows indicate the current of milk gi-adually cooling as it descends. The 
current of water passing upward is warmed, so that when it passes out 
of the spout at F it is very nearly of the same temperature as the milk 

in the receiver. This device appears to 
I be quite simple. 

How to Make Good Butter. — Be 

sure the pasture is of the best, and that it 
contains a variety of the sweetest grasses. 
Do not change from winter feed to spring 
pasture too suddenly, and, particularly, 
do not turn out your cows too early to 

shift for themselves. Let the milking be done by quiet persons, whether 

male or female, at regular times morning or evening, knowing always that 

the milking is conducted as cleanly as it is quietly. 

Know that the utensils for holding the milk are of the best description 

and always scrupulously clean. 




MILK COOIiEB.— FIG. 1. 




MILK COOLER.— FIG. 2. 



224 



TtiE FARM. 




POWEB FOR CHURNING 



See that the milk is perfectly cooled to free it of animal odor. A ther- 
mometer is an absolute necessity in all well regulated dairies. 

Be sure the room for setting milk is cool, and so it may be darkened at 

will. Thorough ventilation is one of the golden rules in daii-ying. The 

temperature of the dairy room should never be more than sixty degrees, nor 

less than forty degrees. 

Skim the milk as soon as the first indications of getting thick from lopper 

are shown. Turn the cream 
slowly into the jar, and stir 
thoroughly when more 
cream is added. Keep the 
receptacle for the cream 
cool, from fifty to sixty de- 
grees, and cover with some 
fabric that will keep out 
minute insects, and at the 
sjame time allow access 
of air. 

Churn when the cream 
is ripe, that is, when the 

cream is sour, every day in spring, and every day in summer. Do not allow 

the cream in the churn to rise much above sixty degrees. Do not churn too 

fast. There is nothing gained by seeking to bring the butter in a few 

minutes. From twenty to thirty minutes is about right. 

Good grass will make nice colored butter. At such seasons, when tlvi 

color of butter is pale, use coloring carefully. It is better that butter be 

rather light than a dark yellow. 

When the butter comes in granules, stop churning. Wash with cold water 

or cold brine; work only enough 

to bring it to a firm uniform 

mass. Do not salt heavily; from 

three-quarters to one ounce of 

salt to a pound of butter is 

enough. Pack in tight, clean, 

sweet packages; fill to within a 

half inch of the top, cover with 

a clean cloth, and add brine to 

fill until sold. Keep it in the 

coolest place you have, and 

there is no reason why you 

should not get the top prices 

for your butter. 

Po-wer for Cliarning. — 

We present four illustrations, 

with brief descriptions, showing 

practical methods for labor saving in the usually tiresome and monotonous 

business of churning, from which may be gleamed some valuable hints. 

Fig. 1, although not a power chum, is, nevertheless, a labor-saving 
arrangement. It is simply a hickory sapling about twelve or fourteen feet 
long, fastened firmly at the butt end, while at the other end is fixed a seat in 
which a child can sit and perform the work with more ease than a grown 
person in the ordinary way. The dash of the churn may be fastened at any 




POWER FOB CHURNING.— FIG. 2. 



THE DAIRY. 



225 



point to accommodate the spring of the pole. Fig. 2 i*? a vertical wheel with 

a rim about two feet in width, on the inside of which the animal treads. It 

is necessary to have this wheel 

as much as eight or ten feet in 

diameter. The engraving 

gives ample insight into ita 

mechanical construction. 
Fig. 3 is a water-power 

churn, showing the water 

wheel fitting easily into the 

box or flume, at the outlet of 

the dam, or it may be simply 

placed in a swift-running 

brook, as it does not require 

much power or speed. The 

wheel should be about three 

feet in diameter. The power 

can be transmitted any dis- 
tance by means of two wires 

fastened upon poles with 

swing trees that receive a 

backward and forward motion 

from the crank of the water- 
wheel. 

Fig. 4 represents a cheap 

churn power, which is both 

simple and practical. A is a 

log, squared and set in the 

ground far enough to be sohd. 

B is the sweep— a four-inch scantling sixteen feet long, with a two-inch hole 

in one end and an axle on the other, and holes in the center for the standard, 

according to the length of the dash. C is the drive-wheel, eighteen inches 

in diameter, three inches 
thick. D, the churn, which 
stands still on a small one- 
legged table, with the leg 
running through the sweep 
(B) and into the stationary 
block. This arrangement 
gives the dasher (E) two 
motions, and causes the but- 
ter to "come" in shorter 
time. F, beam guide; G, 
beam; H, standard; I, hitch- 
ing stick; J, whiffletree; K, 
pitman. It is very easy to 
operate. 

POWER FOR CHURNING. — FIG. 4. Hard Clmrniiig and 

Blue Cream. — It is a very 
common thing for a person with one cow to complam that her cream will not 
churn, or that it churns with great difficulty. The reason is the cream is 
kept so long to get a churning that it becomes too sour. Putting in either 




aOWER FOR CHURNING.— FIG. 3. 




226 THE FARM. 

bicarbonate of soda or sal soda will reduce the acid and help the butter to 
come, but the butter thus made is always inferior. The remedj^ is to churn 
oftener, say every other day, or if the weather is a httle cool, twice a week, ■ 
and to put in milk to make sufficient bulk for churning. The skimmmg, too, 
should be done early— as soon as the cream is all up. or pretty near all up. 
It is better to take in the top of the milk in which the last rising of the 
cream lingers, than wait for the milk to get stale before removing the cream. 
The practice which many people follow of letting the whey start on the milk 
before skimming or on the cream before chui-ning, is to a high degree detri- 
mental both to the churning and to the quantity and quaUty of butter. If 
easy churning is desired, the cream must be churned while it has a fresh 
and new taste— not later than the first stage of sourness. 

The " blue ur moldy-looking cream " is not peculiar to any breed, and it 
occurs in the milk of all cows if they and their milk are improperly cared 
for. The cream of any milk may take on a dark or moldy appearance if too 
long exposed to Hght and to a damp atmosphere. It is more easily induced 
in the milk of cows which, from any cause, have had then- blood heated, or 
by exposure to hot sun, by too fast or too much driving or from feverishness 
by excessive feeding, etc. Milk incUned to have flecks in its cream is very 
easily made to assume a moldy condition, for the dark color is derived from 
an actual fungus wliich develops in the milk and cream. An unusually 
ready development of it is evidence that the cow is in some way sick — from 
over feeding or other causes. There is always in milk a variable quantity of 
albuminous matter which turns dark-colored upon exposure to air and light, 
but it is heavier than cream and heavier also than the serum of milk, and is 
insltned to settle to the bottom. This has probably no connection with dark- 
colored cream; it is more likely the result of unfavorable health and damp- 
ness of cellar. 

To Keep Butter. — It is said that a compound of one part sugar, 
one part nitre, and two parts of the best Spanish salt, beaten together 
into a fine powder and mixed thoroughly with the butter in the pro- 
portion of one ounce to the pound, would keep the butter in every respect 
sweet and sound during two years. It is also said to impart a rich 
marrowy flavor that no other butter ever acquires, and tastes very little 
of the salt. 

Cream and Cold. — It has been discovered by a French scientist that the 
rising of cream is quicker, and its volume greater, the nearer the 
temperature is to that of freezing water; further, that the yield ol butter 
is greater, and the skim milk, butter and cheese are all of the better 
quality under like conditions. These facts should be worth the attention of 
dairy keepers. 

"Waterproof Butter Wrappers. — At the Pennsylvania State Fair in 
1882 waterproof butter wrappers attracted considerable attention from 
dairymen. Advocates of the Avaterproof paper claim for it that, being air- 
tight, it preserves the freshness and flavor of the butter, and is about one- 
sixth as expensive as cloth. 

To Restore Rancid Butter.—Kancid butter can be restored by first 
washing it thoroughly in cold water, then to every one hundred pounds add 
two pounds pulverized sugar, two ounces powdered saltpetre, and salt to 
suit, 



fHK DATUr. 



^21 



An Improved Butter- Worker — This butter-worker consists of a table 
of maple (Fig, 1), or other hard sweet timber, in the form shown in the en- 
graving, with three feet sides and six feet on curve, without side pieces. At 
each edge is a deep groove to conduct the brine. At the front end is a rim, 
projecting one-half inch above the plank. At the lower end is a deeper cross- 
groove, with outlet at one side of the projecting bed-piece. In this bed-piece 
is loosely set a post with a 
round tenon fastened by a 
pin beneath. In this post is 
set the lever, so loosely as 
to admit of lifting the han- 
dle of the lever a foot or 
more. This lever is held in 
the mortise by a pin, and 
sets one-eighth of an inch 
above the tal)le at the post; 
is of mai^le, four inches 
wide and three inches thick; 
lower side square cornered 
plain, upper side rounded 
or cornered. The handle is 
wrought at the upper side, wiproved butter- worker.— fig. 1. 

leaving a shoulder below, which sets just within the rim of the table. 

Fig. 2 shows the frame-work of the table, into which the legs are formed. 
The entire cost of this butter-worker will not exceed $3. The operation, 
which differs from that of other workers in use, consists of pressing the but- 
ter with a direct vertical pressure — ^no grinding strokes allowable. Then 
strike the left side of the butter with a right upward motion of the lever a 
few strokes, and it lies in a roll parallel to the lever. Now turn the roll at 
right angles to the lever, and contioue the three operations of pressing, 

rolling, and turning, until it is 




a 



sufficiently worked. 



FrenclL Butter Making. 

— In the French system the 
butter is made from very sour 
cream, is washed in the churn, 
not salted, but sold for present 
use in Paris and England, and 
the keeping quality is not 
much studied. Notwithstand- 
ing the extreme sourness of the 
cream when churned, the but- 
ter has almost the same ap- 
pearance as that made from 
sweet cream— this is the result of the washing. The finest French butter is 
shipped at once to the consumers, and generally consumed befoi-e the end of 
three days; so its keeping qualities are not material. No salt is used for the 
home market. It is put up in large balls of 28 lbs. to 40 lbs., each ball being 
covered by a piece of fine flannel and placed in a willow basket. Second and 
third-class butter is made up in one pound rolls and packed in grape leaves. 
For the English market, butter is put up in one poutid rolls and covered 
with jaconet and lace paper, and packed in small boxes 14x9x6 inches, twelve 



I 



IMPROVED BUTTER-WORKER. — FiG. 2. 



'228 



THE PAttM. 



.%%%%% 

)%%%% 




rolls in each box. M. Lepelletier is the largest exporter of this kind of but^- 
ter, and is said to ship 1,200 boxes per week, his trade amounting to 12,000,-^ 
000 francs per year. It is sent in refrigerating cars. In Paris all butter is 
sold by auction at ten markets. Women are mostly the buyers. Three oi' 
four hundred lots are sold every hour. Sworn officials weigh and register 
the butter, and make up the accounts of sale. The different kinds of butter 
are named from the places where they are made, and classified according to 
quaUty. The best butter is sold a^, 50 and 75 cents per pound. 

Preparing Butter for Market. -After the milk has been kept in the 
spring or cooling house about forty-eight hours, it is then taken out and 
skimmed, and after the butter is made it is put up in half-pound prints for 
market. It is shipped in boxes, having an ice chamber in the center. The 
boxes arc. 31 by 16 1-2 inches and 15 inches deep. The ice chest is of tin, 
placed in the center of the box, and is 16 1-2 by 5 inches, 15 inches deep. At 
the bottom there is a hole, which extends also through the box, for the es- 
cape of water from the ice as it melts. Movable shelves with cleats on the 
edges, are fitted in each side of the ice chest, one above the other, for hold- 
ing the piints. The box holds 10 shelves, 5 on each side of the ice chamber, 

and the shelves, when in 
place, leave a space between 
each of 2 1-2 inches. "VVe 
give a rough draft of the 
movable shelf in our illus- 
tration. Each shell holds 
20 prints, or 10 pounds of 
butter. In packing the but- 
ter a plain board is used to 
receive the prints at the 
l)ottom of the box; then the 
shelf, as illustrated, is 
placed on top, and thus con- 
tinued until the whole number of prints are in. A movable shelf just com- 
ing to the top of the box is placed over the top prints, so that when the lid 
of the box is brought down it presses tightly on it and thus keeps the shelves 
from shaking and prevents any injury to the prints. 

Keeping Butter for Winter Use. — Good butter put up after the follow- 
ing directions will keep in sound condition on« year: Use for a package a tub 
somewhat tapering, Avith heavy staves and heads provided at both ends, so 
as to make a package that will not leak. In packing the tub is turned on 
the small end, and a sack of cotton cloth is made to fit the tub, and into this 
the butter is packed until it reaches to within an inch of the groove for hold- 
ing the upper head. A cloth is next laid upon the top of the butter and the 
edges of the sack brought over tliis and neatly pressed down; then the head 
is put in its place and the hoops driven home. The package is now turned 
upon the large qpd and the sack of butter drops down, leaving a space on 
the sides and top. Strong brine is then poured into a hole in the small end 
and until it will float the butter. The hole is tightly corked and the butter 
is pretty effectually excluded from the air. Where only a small quantity of 
butter is to be preserved, pack it in self-sealing fruit jars. By this plan a 
little brine is put int» the jar, which is then packed not quite full of granu- 
lated butter. Some bleached muslin is laid over the butter, then the little 




SrOVABLE SHELF FOB HOLDING BUTTER PRINTS. 



fliE DAIJii: 22'J 

place above filled with salt, and finally enough strong brine, made from 
butter salt, poured iu to fill the can. When packing roll butter in jars the 
brine should be made strong enough to bear an egg. To three gallons of 
this brine add a quarter of a pound of whitQ sugar and one tablespoonful of 
saltpetre. Boil the brine, and when it is cool strain carefully. Make the 
butter into rolls and wrap each roll separately iu white muslin cloth. Pack 
the jar full, weight the butter down, and submerge in brine. 

Suggestions in Milk-Setting. — Professor L. B. Arnold says: 

Fii'st — To make the finest flavored and longest-keeping butter the cream 
must undergo a ripening process by exposure to the oxygen of the air while 
it is sweet. This is best done while it is rising. The ripening is very tardy 
when the temperature is low. 

Second — After cream becomes sour, the more ripening the more it depre- 
ciates. The sooner it is then skimmed and churned the better, but it should 
not be churned while too new. The best time for skimming and churning is 
just before acidity becomes apparent. 

Third — Cream makes better butter to rise in cold air than to rise in cold 
water, but it will rise sooner in cold water, and the milk will keep sweet 
longer. 

Fourth — The deeper milk is set the less airing the cream gets while rising. 

Fifth — The depth of setting should vary with the temperature; the lower 
it is the deeper milk may be set; the higher, the shallower it should be. 
3Iilk should never be set shallow iu a low temperature nor deep in a high 
one. Setting deep in cold water economizes time, labor and space. 

Sixth — "While milk is standing for cream to rise the purity of the cream, 
and consequently the fine flavor and keeping of the butter, will be injured if 
the surface of the cream is exposed freely to air much warmer than the cream. 

Seventh — When cream is colder than the surrounding air, it takes up 
moisture and impurities from the air. When the air is colder than the cream, 
it takes up moisture and whatever escapes from the cream. In the former 
case the ci-eam purifies the surrounding air; 'in the latter, the air helps to 
purify the cream. The selection of a creamer should hinge on what is most 
desired — highest quality, or greatest convenience and economy in time, space 
and labor. 

First Principles in Butter Making — Butter is ^nis/iecZ in the dairy, 
but not made there. The stamp of the dairy woman puts the gold in market 
form; but the work must be commenced in the field or in the feeding stables; 
and this leads at once to the consideration of feeding for butter. During the 
early, sunny summer month, when nature is profuse of favors, there is little 
to be done beyond accepting her bounty. The tender grasses are full of the 
needed nutrition, and they afford the constant supply of moisture without 
which the secretion of milk is greatly lessened. Yet, at this season, as well 
as all others, a pure supply of water is absolutely necessary. It does not 
meet the requirement if cattle have a wet hole full of surface drainage in the 
pasture, or a frog pond. While it is not probable that the tadpoles and wrig- 
glers sometimes found in city milk have been drunk by thirsty cows, many 
infusions do exist in such pools that are hardly eHnunated or rendered en- 
tirely harmless by the wonderful milk secretions of the animal. The cattle 
should drink from spring-fed boxes; and as often as these, under the hot 
sun, are seen to produce green growth or floating scum a pail of coarse salt 
may be put in, and the current checked until the fresh-water growths are 



'230 THE' FARM. 

killed; the salt watei- is then drawn oif, and for a long time the trough will 
remain pure and the water bright. 

Bitter Milk. — Bitter milk is a matter of frequent occurrence every fall 
and winter, or soon after the cows are off from grazing. It is caused, first, 
by bitter herbs in the hay — such as May weed, rag weed, John's Avort, etc. — 
and also by the use of too much over-ripe food, such as straw, corn stover, 
or late-cut hay. It never occurs when cows ai'e f d on good food, and are 
thriving, or even holding their own, and are kept comfortably warm. It can 
be avoided, lirst, by correcting the error in feeding and exposure; and, sec- 
ondly, by scalding the milk when it is first drawn, by setting it in pans over 
a kettle of boiling water till the skin which forms on its top is well wrinkled, 
and then setting it away to cool for the cream to rise. Tliis treatment will 
drive out the cause of the bitter flavor, and improve the butter and make it 
easy to chum. 

Borax for Salting Butter. — The Italian minister of agriculture ad- 
dressed a communication to the chamber of commerce of Milan relative to 
experiments in salting butter with borax which have been carried out at the 
agricultural station at Florence. From the account which appears in the 
Giornale di AgricdUura, borax would appear to have a most marvelous effect 
in insuring its absolute preservation. Sam])le8 of fresh butter made at the 
Florence station, and puiposely not carefully freed of their buttermilk, were 
found, on the addition of aboiit eight per cent, of borax, to maintain their 
natural fine flavor, without the least change whatever, for upward of three 
months. To attain this satisfactory result, it is necessary that the borax 
should be perfectly diy, and in a very fine powder, and care must be taken 
to its thorough mixture with the whole mass of the butter operated on. 
Among the further advantages of this plan, it is noted that borax imparts no 
flavor of any kind to the butter, while it is entirely harmless in its nature, 
and also reasonably cheap. Still later experiments have shown that a very 
nmch smaller proportion of l>orax suffices to produce the desired effect, and 
also that simple solutions of the salt act quite as well as the dried powder. 

Don't Flavor Yoiu- Butter too Mucli — It is too true that unless we 
adopt the im^Drovements of the day and look carefully after our interests, we 
shall be left in the background as to quality and profit. But why is it that 
western creamery butter biings a better price ? We are told it is because of 
its uniformity of quality. The butter is made from day to day, from week 
to week under the same conditions, and always free from anything that would 
impart unpleasant flavors. Milk set in a farmer's kitchen or in any place 
where it will absorl) unpleasant odors from cooking vegetables, from to- 
bacco smoke or from clothing fully charged Avith the odor of the stables, 
cannot make butter free from unpleasant flavor. "We complain of low prices 
received when we ourselves are to blame. The flavor of the butter is af- 
fected by the feed of the cows. We lay the blame at the door of the dairy 
woman, when he Avho feeds the cows is responsible. 

To Color Butter. — As a rule, it is absolutely essential in the winter to 
color butter in order to make it marketable, or at all attractive as an article 
of table use at home. There may be a possible exception to this rule, in 
cases where cows are fed largely upon yellow corn, pumpkins, carrots, etc., 
but this does not lessen the importance of the rule. Of the various sub- 
stances used in coloring butter, we thiuk\that carrots (of the deep yellow 



THE DAIRY 231 

variety) give the most natural color and most agreeable flavor. Annatto, 
however, is principally used, with most satisfactory results. If carrots are 
used, take two large-sized ones, clean them thoroughly, and then with a 
knife scrape off the yellow exterior, leaving the Avhite pith; soak the yellow 
part in boiling milk ten or fifteen minutes. Strain boiling hot into the cream; 
this gives the cream the desired temperature, colors it nicely, and adds to 
the sweetness of the butter. 

How to Detect Oleomargarine. — A Frenchman points out in a note to 
the Belgian Academy a simple way of distinguishing between natural and 
artificial butter, based upon the different behavior of the two substances 
when exposed to a temperature of from 150 degrees to 160 degrees in a cap- 
sule or test tube. At this temperature artificial butter produces very Httle 
froth, but the mass undergoes a sort of irregular boiling, accompanied by 
violent jerks, which tend to project some of the butter out of the vessel. 
The mass grows brown, but this is by reason of the caseous matter separa- 
ting into clots on the walls. The fatty portion of the sample sensibly retains 
its natural color. Natural butter, on the other hand, at the same tempera- 
ture, produces abundant froth, the jerks are much less pronounced, and the 
mass grows brown, but in a different way. A good part of the brown color- 
ing matter remains in suspension in the butter, so that the whole mass has 
a characteristic brown look. All natural butter behaves in the same way. 

ViriuL Butter IVitliout Ice. — In families where the dairy is small, a 
good plan to have the butter cool and firm without ice is by the process of 
evaporation, as practiced in India and other warm countries. A cheap plan 
is to get a very large-sized, porous, earthen flower-pot, with a large saucer. 
Half fill the saucer with water, set it in a trivet or light stand— such as is 
used for holding hot irons will do; upon this set your butter; over the whole 
invert the flower-pot, letting the top rim of it rest in and be covered by the 
water; then close the hole in the bottom of the flower-pot with a cork; then 
dash water over the flower-pot, and repeat the process several times a day, 
or whenever it looks dry. If setia a cool place, or where the wind can blow 
on it, it will readily evaporate the water from the pot, and the butter will be 
as firm and cool as if from an ice-house. 



THE APIARY. 




PLATFOBM. 



Wintering Bees— For the benefit of those who are interested in the 
subject of bee-keeping, we present herewith an illustrated article upon win- 
tering bees, the suggestions 



in which we think will be 
found both valuable and 
timely. 

Prepare, of any sound 
matched flooring, a plat- 
form nailed to 2x4 or 3x3 
joists. When ready, set it 
upon blocks or stones, and 
it will appear as shown in 
Fig. 1. On this you are to 

put the bee hives, eight in number, and arranged as stated further on; also 

a north-end board, two side boards, a south-end board and a movable cover 

or roof. The arrangement 

of your hives should be as 

shown in Fig. 2, Avhere a is 

the north-end board, made 

square, but with cleats, as 

in the next figure; and bb 

are two hives with their en- 
trances facing the south; 

ecc are three hives with 

their entrances to the east; 

(I (Id are three hives with 

their entrances to the west. 

The object of this arrauge- 



C C 

d d 



FIG. 2. — ARRANGEMENT OF HIVES. 



meut is to vary as far as possible the entrances, that the bees be less con- 
fused when they fly out in winter. Experience shows that most of them find 

out their own hives by this arrangement. 
Fig. 3 shows the inside of the north- 
end piece of the boxing about the hives, 
the outside of which is perfectly plain, 
and a a are two cleats that hold the 
boards together, with the square wall 
cleat at the bottom and the longer cleat 
close by the first cleat, the three cleats 
making an inch space, marked dark, 
which dark places allow the side pieces 
to rest in and be held to the north piece. Fig. 4 shows first the outside of the 
south-end piece, and that it has two cleats, but that the boards do not go 
, down to the bottom of them. The construction of this south piece is further 
seen in the end vieAv, at the right hand of the lar.-<or view. 




FIG. 3. — ^INSIDE OF END EIECE. 



233 

It has two cleats at the 




FIG. 4. — OUTSIDE OF END PIECE. 




FIG. 5. — VIEW OF SIDE PIECE. 



THE APIARY. 

Fig. 5 is a view of the west side boxing piece, 
ends, a a. The one at the left 
hand is a little in from the end, 
as that end fits the dark place 
in the left end of Fig. 3. Two 
cleats, shaped as in the small 
figure of Fig. 4, are on the mid- 
dle parts of the view. They 
serve the same purpose as in 
the large figure in Fig. 4. You 
need not be told that a corre- 
sponding east piece is to be 

made. Now arrange hooks, or other contrivances, and put this boxing to- 
gether about your hives, ar- 
ranged as shown in Fig. 2, 
and you have it ready to pack 
the bees. The best packing 
is dry saw-dust, or cut straw; 
cut it not over an inch long. 
Pack all about the hives, and 
at least six inches thick -over 
the top of the hives. Now 
make a roofing; the form, as shown by Fig. 6, which is made of triangular 
boards, with boards nailed on the top of them. When done, the whole will 
appear as in Fig. 7, which shows 
the two hives, the south-end hav- 
ing three small entrances, too 
small for a mouse or rat to get in 
at, and an inch round hole just 
over the three entrances, which 
hole is covered with wire cloth; 
these are all the holes for venti- 
lation necessary. The dotted 

lines show the form of an ordinary box hive, a foot square and a foot high. 
Of course, in making your platform and boxing, you will make them to fit 

the hive you use, which will 
alter lengths and breadths a 
little, but not the general 
shape of what we have de- 
scribed. The side view 
would be so similar to Fig. 7 
that we do not give it. Obr 
serve this in putting your 
bees in winter quarters: If 
November Ist to 16th passes 
so cold that bees fly httle, 
this is a good time to pack 
them in this boxing. If it is 
so warm that they fly a good 
deal till December 1st or 
16th, then that time is the 
best. Let them have a few coolish days without protection, and be shut up 
fi week or so before you change them from their summer standi to this wiii? 




DESIGN OF BOOF. 




TIQ. 7.— APPEAEANOE WHEN COMPLETE. 



284 



THE FA EM. 



ter packing. Leave the bottom boards of your hives on, and put a Uttle 
sawdust under them. A bee-house is useful if it has a large window in the 
floor, for all operations that require to let the bees out in a room; then they 
fly to the window and get in bunches at its bottom near the floor, and when 

you are through with the changes 
to be made, they go easily into 
the hive. Make a tin reeling ma- 
chine; reel out your honey; put 
it in neat glass packages; make 
holes on the side of your old- 
fashioned box hives, and get 
boxes everywhere— that is the se- 
cret of non-swarming; and make 
winter pacldng sl^eds as we have 
told you. 

^ Bee Farming in Australia. 

f —We present herewith a very in- 
3 teresting article on the subject of 
g bee farming, as practiced in New 
.J, South Wales, Australia, where, 
^ as will be seen, the industry is 
H carried on on a very extensive 
i scale. The article is carefully 
J illustrated and the methods em- 
o ployed plainly described, and we 
» trust that all who take an interest 
4- in the subject of bee keeping may 
2 gain some valuable hints and 
^ suggestions from a perusal of the 
iq same. 

^ The operations in bee culture 

g, going on in Paramatta are well 
< deserving of being ranked as bee 
^ farming. They are carried on 
u after the most approved system 
^ of. the German apiarians, which 
differs only in the form of hive 
used and a few minor details 
from the approved system' fol- 
lowed in Britain and Ameiica. 
But to get at the history of the 
company whose operations we 
illustrate: It appears that, in 
December, 1881, a skilled bee 
master, Wilhelm Abram, arrived 
in Sydney from Germany, where 
bee culture is a recognized indus- 
try amd subsidized by the State, and is under the care of scientific entomolo- 
gists, for the purpose of teaching the art of bee culture to those desirous of 
making it their study, and at such an institution Mr. Abram was trained. 
Before leaving Germany he purchased some of the prize swarms at an exhi- 
bition of Italian bees in Germany, and the Itahan Bee Company commenced 




"THE APIARY. 



2m 



operatious with these at Parramatta, in January, 1882. An importation of 
prize queens from America was made, and the operation of queen rearing 



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THE SWARMING BAG, A GREAT IMPROVEMENT. 



was entered on. In the meantime a number of colonies of the com- 
mon black or English bee had been secured and transferred to frame 
hives, and as Italian queens were reared, the black queens were removed 
and replaced by Italians, the progeny of which replaced the black bees, as 
the latter died out. Not much attention was paid to producing honey until 
the race of Italian bees could be firmly established, and the result was that 
in the spring of last year there were about eighty colonies of gold-banded 
Italians actively at work. 

The bee master is an adept at his profession. With a pipe in his mouth, 




THE QUEF>' BREEDING HIVES. 



THE FARM. 



he opens hive after hive, blowmg a whiff of smoke upon them, to give the 

bees something else to think 
about when they seem any way 
refractory, a projection fi-om the 
stem of the pipe allowing this to 
be clone conveniently. The 
hives used are of the German 
bar-frame kind. They open 
from the back, and each hive is 
two stories high, so that ample 
space can be given to the bees 
when they are storing honey 
rapidly. The main house is 
about 150 feet in length, 10 feet 
high, 10 feet wide, and two tiers 
of hives are arranged on each 
side, as shown in the sketch. 

The swarming bag is one oi 
the best things wo have seen in 
bee culture. It is about six 
feet in length and one foot in 
diameter, and formed of alter- 
nate lengths of calico and mos- 
quito netting, each length having 
a ring of cane inside to hold out 
the bag, as shown in the sketch. 
When the bees are about to 
swarm, the bag is fastened on to 
the front of the hive, and the 
When the queen emerges she bounds up into 




CENTKIFUGAL MACHINE, SHOWING mSIDE. 



other end fastened to a stake, 
the upper end of the bag, and 
is quickly surrounded by her 
followers. Thus the swarm 
is oaptured with ease, the 
alternate breadths of mos- 
quito netting and calico mak- 
ing the interior light and 
enticing for the bees to enter 
and cluster. They are then 
shaken into a bar-frame hive. 
The queen breeding hives 
are much smaller than the 
others, and are arranged at 
distances of about twenty 
feet apart alongside the 
fences. Two or three frames 
of brood comb are put into 
each hive, with a queen cell 
coming to maturity. When 
the queen bee hatches out of 
the cell she makes a flight 
(the only flight of her life) in order to meet a drone or male bee. She is 
then fertilized, and becomes the mother and queen of a family, laying eggs 




THE QUEEN CAGE. 



THE APTABY. SSt 

at the rate of 2,000 daily when the season is good and stores abundant. The 
centrifugal machine is used for extracting honey without destroying the 
comb. The caps with which the bees seal up each cell of honey are sliced 
off with a very thin-bladed knife of simple form, and the frames are set in 
the metal basket of the inside of the machme. Then, by turning the handle, 
the honey is thrown out and runs down the sides of the machine, from which 
it is drawn by a tap, leaving the comb undamaged and ready to be returned 
to the hives for the bees to fill over and over again with nectar. In this way 
absolutely pure honey is got without any other substance whatever, and 
without injuring the bees or annoying them. The queen cage, as shown in 
illustration, is dravm to scale, as is the queen or mother bee seen inside. 

The Culture of Buckwlieat for Bees—Prof. Cook gives the following 
on this subject: 

Buckwheat is valuable as a honey plant, as it can be made to bloom when 
there would otherwise be a dearth of flowers. We have found in our experi- 
mental beds that the Silver Hull variety has more flowers in the panicles, 
and yields more to the acre. The honey is dark, but is preferred to all other 
kinds by some people. It blooms from four to six weeks after sowing. 

It will do fairly well on any soil, but thrives best on a i"ich soil. It should 
be sown broadcast, three jDCcks to the acre. It is usually sown here late in 
July, but for bees it had better be sown early in June. Then it will bloom 
about the middle of July, when bloom is usually absent, and will, I think, 
yield just as well; though I judge simply from observing small plots. The 
cultivation before sowing should be deep and thorough. 

When ripe it is cut and allowed to lie on the ground to dry. V/hen drj- it 
is bound and drawn to the barn, where it may be threshed at once, if it is 
desirable to do so. In fact, the cultivation, scil and harvesting of buckwheat 
are much the same as that given to oats. 

It is safe in estimating that each acre of buckwheat sown within one and 
one-half miles of an apiary is Avorth $100. 

Buckwheat, like other plants, is capricious. Some seasons it yields but 
little honey. It is not a favorite of bees; at least I have known bees to leave 
it for other plants. Perhaps it contained no nectar at the time. 

Will Bee Keeping Pay 1 — ®f course it will. There is nothing that 
either men or women can engage in that will pay anywhere as well as bee 
culture; and there is nothing so well adapted for the farmers' sons and 
daughters as bee keeping, and if they would take hold of four or five 
colonies of Itahan bees they never would want for a few dimes to go to a 
strawberry festival, or perhaps they might want to go to that world-renowned 
exposition that always visits every village about the July days, and if they 
have been good, industrious boys and girls, and will have looked after bees, 
they will have the satisfaction of having their own money, and will not have 
to ask father for the money when he is so pushed with his crops and so short 
of money to pay his hands. But to make the keeping of bees a success, you 
must go into it understandingly, and if you have not already the bees on 
hand, you will have to purchase a few colonies, and be sure to get Italians. 
If they are not in a movable comb they will have to be transferred. You 
will then have them in a hive that you have complete control over, even to 
examine eveiy comb and seeing every bee or queen in the hive. 

Clipping tlie Queen's Wing. — The clipping of the queen's wing hav- 
ing become a matter of acknowledged good policy, as we knew it would, the 



m 



THE FARM. 



question naturally arises, What is the best method for clipping it? We 
have tried all plans, and find the quickest, easiest and the least risk attend- 
ing the following: Lift from the hive the comb on which you find the queen, 
slant it toward the hive with the lower end resting on the ground and the 
upper end against the hive, make no rapid motions to alarm the queen, biit 
deUberately Avait till she is iu a position that you can grasp the end of one 
wing between the thumb and forefinger of the left hand, then with a sharp 
pocket knife and an up and backward motion cut off" about one-third of the 
wing. If deliberate in your movements, the queen will not become 
nervous, nor will she be aware she had been meddled with, no scent of the 

fingers will be left on 
either her wings or 
body, and no commo- 
tion created in the hive. 



A n Unpatented 
Bee Hive. — Apiarians 
know full well the im- 
portance of providing 
the honey bee with a 
properly constructed 
amd well arranged hive, 
in which these little 
workers may safely 
store the nectar care- 
fully gathered fi'om the 
blossoming sweets o f 
earth. Many good and 
valuable hives for this 
purpose have been 
constructed, and are 
the subject of letters 
patent, for the manu- 
facture and use of 
which a royalty is re- 
quired by the owners 
thereof. 

The hive shown in 
connection with this ar- 
ticle is, beyond ques- 
tion, the simplest, 
cheapest, and best ar- 
ranged unpatented hive extant. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of tjie hive as 
it appears upon the sand. In appearance it has a neat, unpretending look 
of self-recommendation. 

The advantages gained by having a passage for the bees at the bottom, 
and six inches upward therefrom, at one side of the hive, are: First. Dur- 
ing winter snow and ice accumulate in sufficient quantities to entirely fill 
and cover the lower series of holes, AvhUe the upper ones remain open, ad- 
mitting fresh air, the importance of which all apiarians are famiUar with. 
Second. Bees alighting at the upper series of holes, upon returning from a 
long and fatiguing flight, have but a short distance to traverse to reach the 
plate where the accumulated sweets are to be deposited. 




_..,.j\»-^i \i 



vvv^'^l. 



BEE HIVE.~FIG. 1. 



THE APIARY. 



The hive proper is 12x12x15—2,160 cubic inches, inside measurement. 

When filled with honey it weighs eighty pounds— a sufficient quantity to 

feed a large colony of bees during the season not fruitful of flowers. 

For supporting the comb in the desired position, small round sticks are 

used in the same manner as in the old box hive. The cover to this portion 

has its upper surface beveled near the edges, to receive and retain in 

position a small or upper hive, 

seven inches high and twelve 

inches square, inside dimensions. 

It is shown in proper place in Fig. 

1, and raised in Fig. 2, disclosing 

the surplus honey boxes, which 

are two in number, 11 1-2 x 6 x 5 1-2 

inches, outside measurement, 

made from quarter-inch pine lum- 

])er, with glass ends or sides, 

cither plain or ornamental, as the 

contents may be designed for home 

consumption or exhibition at the 

sale-room, or to compete for pre- 
miums at fairs. Each of said boxes 

connects with the lower hive by 

four one-inch holes, which are 

made in hive and boxes at the time 

of their construction. They afford 

a sufficient passage-way to and 

from said boxes. The top of the 

hive is delineated in Fig. 3. One 

series of holes is shown, while the 

other is covered (in use both should be) by securing a thin strip in the 

proper position by screws. They remain thus until the hive is thought to be 

tilled, or a sufficient quantity accumulated to successfully winter the bees. 

At this juncture carefully remove the screws, slightly raise the 

strip, place one of the surplus boxes at the end of the strip, and gradually, 

or by a dextrous movement, get it in place, as shown in Fig. 2. When 

both are in position, place over them 
the cover, and, unless you are care- 
less, not one bee is injured by the 
operation. Should the surplus boxes 
be provided with glass ends you may 
at any time during the season view the 
stores therein accumulated by raising 
the cover. At or soon after the ap- 
pearance of autumnal frosts, remove 

BEE HIVE. FIG. '6. ^^^ surplus boxcs, cover the seiies of 

holes as above stated. At the approadh 

of winter again remove them; thereby all vapor arising from the breathing of 

so great a number of insects passes into the empty space above, thus in a 

great measure, preventing death by the congealing of this vapor. Other 

points of merit could be noticed, but will suggest themselves. 

Advice to Young Bee Keepers. — Beginners in bee keeping should 
not, when going into the business, build costly bee houses, provide high- 




BEE HIVE. — FIG. 2. 




240 THE FARM. 

priced, untested, patented hives, purchase a large number of colonies, or 
buy " three-banded" Italian queens at a time when, as yet, they can hardly 
tell a drone from a worker. Begin moderately and hasten slowly. The 
needful experience in practical bee culture is much more easily and far more 
efficiently acqiiired by careful attention to a few choice stocks, than by a hur- 
ried supervision of a large number, even with the aid of manuals and text- 
books. Plain, simple, movable frame-hives, too, will be found better suited 
for the requisite manipulations than fancifiil and complicated contrivances 
devised by persons really ignorant themselves of the habits and wants of 
bees. And colonies placed in an open situation, with their hives readily 
accessible from all sides, and somewhat sheltered or shaded by trees or 
vines, will be much more conveniently managed than when placed in 
ordinary sheds or out-door bee houses. Study first to know what is required 
for success, and then extend your operations when yoii are sure that you can 
have the business " well in hand." 

How to Catcli S-warms. — For the past ten or twelve years, says a cor- 
respondent of the Araerican Bee Journal, I have not cut my fruit trees to 
catch swarms. I get an ordinary sized basket, and nail a three-eighth-inch 
board on the bottom, with some suitable spx-ings under it; then bore a hole 
in the center, and put an iron down tlirough, with a loop on the top and a nut 
on the inside, and screw it fast; buckle a strap, six or eight inches long with 
a snap on it, in the loop. Have a pole cut from the edge of a two-uich plank, 
dressed any length, from eight to ten feet, with a ferule on each end and 
one-quarter inch iron rod sixteen inches in length; take a small ling, and 
bend an eye on the end of the rod, with the ring in it; taper the other end, 
and make it secure in the end of the pole; then curve it so as to project it six 
or eight inches, in wluch snap the basket catcher. 

To use it, push it among the branches of the tree which the bees are 
making for, and if they do not Ught upon it, when they begin to cluster, put 
the catcher up against them, and when you get part of them on your basket, 
move it a Uttle away and toward the branch that they are on, and they will 
all settle on the basket in-five minutes. 

To complete the pole, get a one-half inch rod of iron, twelve inches long, 
tapered at each end, and secure it in the lower end of the pole; and when 
the bees begin to settle on the basket, stick the spear in the ground and let 
it stand, while you are preparing the hive, etc. Then take down the pole 
and unhook the basket with bees, which may be carried any distance you 
wish. Shake off the bees on an open sheet in front of the hive, showing 
them the way, and they will go in faster than a flock of sheep into a yard 
after the gate is open. 

Mice ill the Apiary—During the winter mice are sometimes trouble- 
some guests in the apiary, especially if the hives are surrounded by straw in 
which they can harbor. The best preventive is to have hives so tight that 
they can gain no admittance. For the sake of ventilation it is not well, how- 
ever, to have the entrance closed air-tight; therefore, fasten a piece of wire 
gauze over the entrance of the hives that may be in the cellar, or that may 
be buried in the ground; this will exclude mice and admit air; and over the 
entrance of hives that are covered with boxes, fasten a piece of tin about a 
quarter of an inch above the bottom board, so that the bees can just pass 
ttftder the edge of it, while the mice are excluded. 



FARM IMPLEMENTS. 



Combined Rollei' and "Vibrating Harrow. — The thorough puiveriza-* 
tion of the soil is, and will be, an important item in the tillage of the earth. 
The most effective method, 
therefore, of attaining this re- 
sult, is one of interest to every 
individual. Our engraving on 
this page is intended to rep- 
resent an arrangement of a 
combined roller and vibrating 
harrow, the successful work- 
ing of which we have had the 
opportunity of witnessing. 
The invention consists of the 
fi-ame, A, roller, B, which 
may be constructed of either 
iron or wood, the axle of 
which terminates at each end 
in a strong crank, C, C, of from 
six to nine inches in diameter. 
These cranks are keyed upon 
the axle in opposite positions. 
Connected to the wrist pins of 
each crank are the connecting 
rods, D, D, Avhich extend back- 
wards, and are attached to 
opposite corners of the har- 
row, E. The attachment of 
the connecting rods to the 
cranks is made with universal 
joints, so as to allow of a free 
and easy working of all the 
parts, and to permit the roller 
and harrow separately to ac- 
commodate themselves to the 
inequalities of the ground. 
The manner in which the har- 
row is vibrated through the 
medium of the crank in rota- 
ting with the roller, it is not necessary further to explain. If the machine 
is used as shown in the drawing, the last operation performed will be that 
of harrowing, but if 't is desir(?d to leave the ground in a rolled condition, 
all that is necessaiy to do is to turn over the tOngue, F, of the roller, until 
it rests upon the cross pieces, G, and attach the team by a chain, to what 
will then be the front comer of the harrow. Or should it be desired to use 




COMBINED ROLLER AND VIBRATING HARROW. 



242 



THE FAHM. 



the roller or harrow separately, they may be readily disconnected by driving' 
out two of the bolts in the universal joints. This invention is public prop- 
erty for the benefit of the world at large. 

Hay Elevating Apparatus._We present herewith a sketch and de- 
scription of a new hay elevator, in the form of a suspended track and hay- 
fork traveler, which we think will not only prove a timely suggestion, but a 
positive boon to many farmers. This track can be suspended in any barn, 
high or low, without any additional timbers. The hay can be run up, and over 
beams, without any scattering or dragging. Another great advantage in this 
plan is having the rope double from the fork to the traveler. This gives the 




HAY ELEVATING APPAEATUS. 

horse great power on the fork just where it is needed, that is, when the 
forkful of hay is separating from the load. 

It consists in part of a track made of hard wood, in the form shown. The 
center piece A is six inches wide and one and a half inches thick, put to- 
gether with dowel-pins, until as long as wanted. The slats B B are two 
inches wide and one inch thick. They are nailed on the lower edge of A, 
breaking joints as they are put on. They are put on each side of A as shown 
in sketch. There is a pulley C, six inches in diameter by one and a half 
inches thick, put in the back end of the track. The box for this pulley is 
made by bolting a short piece, six inches wide and one inch thick, on each 
side of A. A, clevis; D goes over the track and is fastened on with the bolt 
that goes through the pulley. C, a rope is put through the clevis and this 
end of the track is drawn up close to the rafters. The front end is suspended 
by a clevis and two ropes; it is hung a foot or so lower than the back end. 
Screw into A the hooks that come with the fork, about eight feet apart, and 
into each put a strong link six inches long by one and a half inches in the 



FARM IMPLEMENTS. 



243 



opening, as shown at E, E, E: these are for the rope to pass through, aaid 
also to suspend it by. 

The traveler consists of a pulley and pulley box, H, with sides four inches 
apart, extending up some seven or eight inches, which carry two rollers, N 
N, four inches in diameter and one inch thick, which roll on each side of A, 
and directly on B B. There is an eye, O, on the traveler, in which one end 
of the haul rope is tied; it then passes around a pulley on the fork, then 
through the pulley in box H, around pulley C, through the links E E E, 
around pulley P, and around a pulley at the floor, then to horse. 

There is a latch, as shown at the right of the drawing, to hold the traveler 
•ver the load until the fork is elevated; when the pulley on the fork strikes 
the bottom of the latch and raises the catches up, then the fork moves back; 
Avhen the fork returns, the catches slide over the pin. 

Tkere is a small rope (1) fast- 
ened to the traveler by a clevis, 2; 
said rope passes over a pulley, 3, 
down to weight, 4, around the pul- 
ley fastened to the weight, up to 
the eye, 5, where it is tied. 

By this arrangement a long 
track can be used in a low barn. 
The weight will bring the fork back 
without pulling on the trip cord. 

In using this plan, the horse, 
after he has drawn up a forkful, is 
turned to the left; around to the 
side of the rope, and walked back 
to the starting place; he is then 
turned around to the right, on the 
same side of the rope that he came 
back on; by so doing, there is no 
stepping over the rope, which gen- 
erally twists or untwists it, and 
renders it very Uable to loop 
around a horde's legs as the fork 
comes back. The weight must be 
only just heavy enough to bring 
the fork back slowly, then the rope 
will not pull on the horse when he 
is coming back. 

Home-Made Tools._Fre- HOME-MADE TOOL.— FIG. 1. 

quently the farm and garden tools 

and contrivances that are home-made are quite as effective as expensive 
boughten ones, and farmers that are blessed with a little ingenuity are con- 
tinually " fixing " up some kind of a labor-saving machine to work with. Our 
illustrations represent two very handy and useful implements, of which a 
farmer writes as followe: "While using to-day a tool which just suits me for 
killing weeds, it struck me that it might just suit others, even if it is home- 
made and not patented. To make it, take an old twelve or fourteen-inch 
halirouHd file; grind off the teeth, bend it as shown in Fig. 1, and put it in 
an ordinary handle. Now, if you want to loosen the soil, or puU out sods or 
large weeds, you have a light pick to do it. If you want to kill ordinary. 




241 



THE FARM. 



weeds turn the hoe flat on the ground and scrape away. Now, as the file or 
hoe has two sharp edges, you can use either side; as it is long it will work 
very rapidly; as it is narrow it will work easily, and not draw the dirt over 
the weeds and re-plant them, but will tumble them on top for old Sol to deal 
with. 

" Another home-made tool now in season, and which has saved me much 
labor between rows of mangel wurtzel, carrots, etc., is made by taking a 
piece of old, thin, sharp tire, reversing the bend so as to bring the flat side 
down, bending it to fit between the rows and with the two ends brought to- 
gether so as to bolt to an old plow beam, as shown in Fig. 2. Make one, 

hitch old Tom before it, and go to 
work, and if it don't work to a T, 
tell." 

Care of Farm Implements. — 

Any implement that with good usage 
and protection will last eight years, 
will become weak and defective and 
generally useless, if exposed during 
four years to dews, rain and sun. It 
cannot be otherwise. Dew is very 
destructive to all wood, and sun 
cracks admit rain and moisture to 
the interior fibres, to work injury 
there. To leave implements thus 
exposed is a direct loss of fifty per 
cent., a heavy tax. But to state it 
mildly: An implement which, left 
unprotected would last five years, 
will undoubtedly last six years iif 
always kept dry and in the shade 
when not in actual use. This will 
save one-fifth of its efiiciency, or 
twenty per cent. A few boards or a 
straw cover, and attention to having 
implements always put under, is far 
more profitable than to " work out " 
the twenty per cent, to buy new ones. 
Woodwork that must be left exposed, will be greatly benefitted by a fre- 
quent application of paint, or simply a coat of painting oil and by filling up 
all sun cracks, as soon as formed with such oil. The use of crude petroleum 
tends to the preservation of wood, and may be applied to all unpainted wood- 
work of implements. 

Improved Tread Power. — In the tread-mill power \. e have here illus- 
trated, the endless traveler consists of cast-iron chain links joined together 
and carrying lags which are connected to the links by a tenon on each end 
fitting in a corresponding mortise in the link. Carrying rollers are fitted to 
run in boxes attached to the frame, so that the chain links run along on them 
from one to another, and in order that the rollers may be of larger than or- 
dinary size and placed farther apart, the chain links have abutting shoulders 
above the pivot joints, which hold the lags up level for the horse to walk on. 
I^Rch lag has a rib or cleat nailed on the upper surface just back of the front 




HOME-MADE TOOL.— FIG, 



FARM IMPLEMENTS. 



346 




edge. The rollers that sustain the weight of the horse may be larger, 
stronger, and easier running than where the rollers are attached to the 
chains. For a brake to regulate the 
speed of the machine, a couple of centri- 
fugal levers are pivoted to a couple of 
the arms of the flywheel, and having a 
brakeshoe on the short arm to act on a 
friction rim attached to the frame, the 
long arms of the levers being connected 
to the rocker bar by rods, and to the 
rocker one of the levers is connected by 
a coiled spring and adjusting screw, 
which tend to keep the brakes off the ' 
rim when the speed is not too high; but impboved tbead poweb. 

when excess of speed throws out the centrifugal levers the shoes will be 
pressed on the rim till the speed slows to the proper limit. The machine is 
provided with a simple stop device and is improved in other details. 

A Good Corii-Marlcer. — The worst difficulty with ordinary three or four 

tooth corn-markers results 
from the inflexibility of the 
long bar to which the teeth or 
marker are attached. In 
passing over uneven ground 
some of the teeth will not 
touch the earth, and conse- 
quently the planter must 
guess the position in which 
the seed should be planted. 
The marker we herewith il- 
lustrate is constructed to sur- 
mount this difficulty— two 
joints being made in the bar 
which allow each tooth to 
make its proper furrow on a, very uneven surface. The joints are made by 
sawing the bar apart at the places indicated in the engraving, then connect- 
ing the sections by bolting on two stout iron straps, the bolts passing entirely 
through the bar of wood. Four straps of light wagon tire ii'on, each six 
inches long, and four six inch 
bolts will make the two joints. A 

A Good Clod Crusher. — 

Take two pieces of board 2x6 or 
8, and round the end of each with 

an ax. Nail boards 6 feet long on 

the bottom. They should be ^ Gooi> clod oeusheb. 

about 1 1-2 or 2 inches thick, beveled and lapped, as shown in our engraving. 
Bore 2 holes (in place where indicated) with a half-ioch bit; take 8 feet same 
sized rope, and tie loop in middle; put ends through holes and tie knot in 




A GOOD COBN-MABKER, 




246 



THE FARM, 



each to keep it there. Hitch your team to it, jump on yourself, and driv© 
ahead. Once going over mil be sufficient. Your land will be finer than you 
could harrow it in a week. It is better than a roller, for it levels the land, 
does not pack it, and draws easier than either harrow or roller, and can be 

made by a boy ten years 
old in half an hour's time. 

Spile or Post Driver. 

— Every farmer has often 
seen the time, we believe, 
when he could have saved 
himself or his men a great 
deal of hard labor, if he 
could only have had the 
use of a spile or post 
driver to sink a few spiles 
here on this marshy land, 
to build a dam, or to drive 
down a few posts there to 
erect a small building upon 
or to drive doAvn a line of 
fence posts; but, not being 
the possessor of one him- 
self, and not knowing where 
he could borrow one con- 
veniently from a neighbor, 
the work has been done 
without it, and much un- 
necessary labor wasted 
thereupon. We consider a 
post driver one of the most 
useful implements, for gen- 
eral use, to be found upon 
a farm. We present an il- 
lustration of a good and 
substantial post driver, 
with simple directions how 
it can be made, and Avould 
offer the suggestion that 
the dull months of the 
winter season will afibrd a 
good opportunity for those 
who wish to provide them- 
selves Avith one of these 
useful implements, to do 
so, and thus have it in readiness for use when next season's work begins. 

The machine we have illustrated is of quite simple construction, and with 
the exception of a little iron work, the pulleys and ropje, may be made by 
any farmer who is handy with tools. The pair of runners (1) are 9 feet long, 
made of oak 7 inches wide and 4 inches thick. The cross pieces (2) are of 4 
by 4-inch scantling. The distance from the rear cross piece to the next one 
is 10 inches, and from that to the front one is 2 1-2 feet. The rear on© is left 
open m the middle, as represented, for the post. Two pieces of 2 by 4-inch 




SPLLE OR POST DRIVER. 



FARM IMPLEMENTS^. 24ff 

Bcantling are bolted across the top of the cross pieces near the middle, as 
seen in the cut. The two upright pieces (4) arc 20 feet long, of 2 by 6-inch 
scantling stiffened by a 2 by 4-inch piece spiked on the outside edgewise,. 
They would be better made of 4 by 6-inch stuff, or even 6-inch square, as 
they are required to be stiff. The braces (5) are 2 by 4 inches, the front 
ones a foot the longest. The weight, or block (6), may be round or square, 
20 inches in diameter, and 2 or 2 1-2 feet long, of solid, heavy oak, and 
grooved on the sides next to the uprights. In the top of this is a strong 
staple, to Avhich the shears, which are fastened in the sliding block above, 
catch. The grooves in the w^cight are 6 inches wide, to take in the whole 
Avidth of the uprights (foiir pins on each side would answer the purpose of 
the grooves). Two 2-inch auger holes are bored through the rear portion 
of each runner, in order to drive in stakes or a crowbar to keep the machine 
from being drawn forward while driving the post. The working will be 
readily understood. A chain is fastened to the front cro8h>-piece at the 
points where the top pieces are joined, to which the whiffletrees are hooked. 
It is then draAvn forward by the team (a span of horses or mules) until the 
weight is over the mark for the post. The post being placed, the whiffletrees 
are then unhooked from the chain and hooked to the rope which pulls up 
the weight. One to three blows will drive the post in to the required depth. 
It is then drawn forward to the next post. Two men and a span of mules 
Avill drive three-fourths of a mile of posts in a day, and one man will mark 
for the posts and face them ready for the boaixls in the same time. The 
posts are slightly pointed, and thus driven, set very firm. The cost of such 
an implement is about $25, and it will pay for itself in a few days. 

A Convenient Tool. — A cheap tool that will prove very handy and can 
be made very cheaply and quickly, and used for setting out plants such as 
sweet potatoes, cabbage, tomatoes, etc. Take a round- piece of wood one 
and a half inches in diameter and about a foot long; sharpen one end neatly; 
at the o-ther end cut down to one inch in diameter, one inch below the end; 
this will give a small shoulder all around. 

Take another round piece of wood the same size, or if a Uttle larger it 
\n\\ answer as well. Cut it four inches long, in the center bore a hole with 
an inch auger, and fasten this on the top of the other piece; this will serve 
as a handle, and the stick can be pushed down into the soil easily and pulled 
out, and can also be used to press the dirt firmly around the roots of the 
plants that you are setting out. Ten minutes' work will make one, and you 
will find it very convenient for use, so as not to have to hunt around for a 
sharp stick every time you want to set out a few plants. 

Implement for Small-Crop Hoeing._A Massachusetts fanner writes: 
"' I beg to introduce a small hoe which has not been used among the agri- 
culturists yet. It can be made of old discarded scythe-blades, cut sloping 
at the corners, so that the face next the ground is nine inches wide and the 
back six inches wide. At the corners, a quarter or half inch can be turned 
up at an angle to make a hook lilce a blacksmith's knife used to finish off 
horses' feet. Then a shank of three-eighths inch wrought iron can be welded 
on to the center, and the other end into a good handle. Any person skilled 
in hoeing trjing this hoe to single out carrots, parsnips, etc., will wonder 
why he did not think of it before. I get an old table knife and heat it, turn- 
ing about two inches of the end to a hook shape, to thin out my cabbage seed 
and onion beds, cutting the ground clean and quickly between the plants." 



248 



THE FABM. 



Coulter Cleaning Plo-w Attacliment. — Our engraving represents 
a simple attachment to a plow, intended to keep the coulter free from ob- 
structions when plowing in stubble or turning under long manure. It 
consists of a rod of iron, one end of which is attached to the wheel of the 
plow ix such a manner that its turning will give the rod a backward and for- 
ward motion. The rod passes 
along under the beam and is 
bent around its base, or the 
shank of the plow in 
wooden beamed ones, just 
above the mold board, and 
forms a loop against the 
coulter. This loop, working 
backward and forward, workH 
ofl: all obstructions from the 
coulter. 




H A Farm Tool Housre. 

I One of the most useful and 
W money-saving buildings that 
< a farmer can place on his 
H premises is a spacious and 
„ convenient tool house. It is 
g generally the case that there 
o ia room enough in the various 
^ outbuildings ' to house the 
g fiirm implements if it is econ- 
g omized; but it is a corner 
^ here and a few feet of barn or 
o shed floor there; sometimes 
« in a cellar and sometimes in 
H a loft, possibly easy of access, 
p but probably difficult, and in 
8 all such instances it is space 
originally intended and 
needed for some other pur- 
pose. Tho main reason why 
so many farmei-s neglect pro- 
tecting their implements from 
the weather when not in use, 
is the lack of convenient and 
roomy storage. We lay great 
stress on its' being spacioue 
and handy; for if it is thus, 
James will always drive the 
lumber wagon inside to take the hay rack off, and he will draw in the stone 
boat with the plow and harrow and cultivator on it, and they will escape 
the next rain or dew and the consequent coat of rust. A farmer needs a 
tool house as much as a horse-barn or a woodshed. Our illustration is sug- 
gestive. It is adapted to a locality abounding with stone. The walls of the 
building are made of that material, laid without mortar. The foundation 
is placed below the frost, and the earth is banked on the outside to further 
protect them and to throw off water. The top of the wall is leveled with 



FARM IMFlEMENTS, 



249 




FARM TOOL HOUSE. 



mortar, and a two-inch plank laid on, to which the rafters are spiked. The 
latter are braced on the inside by nailing on cross strips. The roof may be 
made of the cheapest material, which varies with localities. There is one 
window in the end opposite the door. The doorway should be twelve feet 
wide to admit a reaper, and if the location is not too mnch exposed there is 
Uttle need of doors. The ground is the floor. The walls are but six feet 
high, and the structure should be twenty Avide by thirty or forty long. Such 
a building will cost but little where stones are in the way. The farmer can 
build it, and will save many 
dollars in twenty years, and 
many steps each year other- 
wise taken after mislaid im- 
plenaents. 

A Home-Made Corii- 
Slueller — This is simply the 
use of a bar of iron laid 
across a box. The box is 
made of a convenient height 
to sit upon, say twelve or 
fourteen inches, and is eight- 
een by thirty inches square. 
This size will hold over two 

bushels. The bar of iron (or, better, of steel) should be 3-4 by 1-4 of an 
inch in size, and a little longer than the box. Put a staple sufficiently large 
to admit the bar into the middle of the upper edge of one end of the box, 
and cut a notch the size of the bar in the other end. Put in the bar, put a 
piece of board across the notched end for a seat and go ahead with your 
shelling. Both hands are used in the operation, the left clasped tightly 
around the bar between the legs of the operator, while the ear is drawn up- 
ward by the right hand, the fingers of the left holding it firmly against the 
bar, and slightly pushing it upward. Shell two thirds of the small end first, 
then turn and shell the butt. Two bushels of our small corn can be easily 
shelled in an hour, after getting a little accustomed to the manipulation. I 

have tried many other 
ways, but none have 
proved at once so easy 
and so rapid as this. We 
present a sketch of the 
box and bar. 



A Good Weeding Im- 
plement. — We give a 
COEN-SHELLER. sketch ofau excellent 

weeding implement which is valued very highly by those who have used it. 
It eaves at least the wages of three men. By actual experiment one man 
will do more weeding with it in the same time, and do it better, than four 
men with hoes. The implement costs about three dollars— not more, cer- 
tainly—and will save fifty dollars worth of labor during one season. The 
frame is eighteen inches long and twelve inches wide. It is light, made of 
two or two and a half inch material. The wheel is ten inches in diameter, 
of inch and a half or two inch plank, with a tire of sheet iron. The knife in 
the rear is a bar of steel two inches wide and a quarter of an inch thick, bont 




250 



THE FATiM. 



80 as to lift the frame about five inches from the ground as it sits upon the 
surface. Each edge is sharp in order that it may cut both ways— the opera- 
tor pushing it before him by means of the handles, cutting off the weeds, 
then drawing it back the same distance and hfting the knife at the same 
time, in order to insure a displacement of the weeds. The knife may be 
made of a width to suit any space between rows of vegetables. The form of 

the knife is such as that it may 
be run as close to the rows 
as is desu'ed, without endan- 
gering the roots of plants— 
for it cannot cut under. 
Weeders of this character 
are sometimes made with the 
knife before the wheel. Any- 
body can make the wood- 
work of this weeder who has 
the tools. Ordinary plow 
handles that can be pur- 
chased for twenty-five cents 
vnll answer. The knife, the 
bi-aces to the handles, and 
the tire of the wheel, is all 
the iron aboiTt it. We have 
devoted this much space to 
its description and commen- 
dation because there are 
many farmers who are turn- 
ing their attention to root 
culture and to the culture of 
small fruits, and there are 
many others who woiild de- 
vote more acres to these 
crops were labor available. 
Those who grow carrots, 
onions, turnips, parsnips, the 
sugar beet, or even straw- 
benies, will find, for money 
invested in one of these im- 
plements, a sure return. 
There is no patent on it that 
we know of, and any man 
with gumption can make one. 

T ]i o m a s ' No-Pat eitt 
Scraper. — Our illustration 
represents a practical and 
very useful implement for use on public or private roads, and as there is no 
patent upon it, it can be easily made by any one as follows: 

Take a hard wood plank, say three by fourteen inches, seven feet long. 
Bevel the back side, rivet on an old mill saw for the edge. Put in a mortise 
wide enough to receive the tenon of the pole on an angle — a common ash 
wagon pole with a tenon say two by four inches, and five feet of medium 
size cable chain fastened on each side of the pole two and a half feet from 




FARM IMPLEMENTS. 



251 



the tenon. Fasten to the plank, on a line below the mortise, one grub hook 
two and a half feet from the mortise, on each side of said mortise, to hitch 
to the chains on the pole. Unhook the chains, and your scraper is in two 
pieces, handy to pack aAvay under cover. Estimated cost: 

Pole, 25c.; plank, 25c.; old saw, $1.00; making woodwork, 50c.; chains 
and iron work, $1.50. Total, 
13.50. 

Set your scraper at the 
right angle'to carry the gravel 
or earth toward the center of 
the road, and drive on at a 
good brisk walk, the driver 
to ride or place on weights 
when necessary. If the road 
is very rutty or uneven, it is 
better to change the angle 
and drive back on same side, 
as the scraper would cross its 
(3Avn angle going back, and 
still carry the earth toward 
the center of the road. 

A Clod Cruslier — We 

illustrate a very cheap, sim- 
ple, but efficient implement 
— first made and used, we 
believe, in E n g 1 a n d — for 
breaking lumps of earth on 
plowed fields and leaving thomas' no-patent scraper. 

the surface smooth and finely pulverized. It is a very good substitute for 
the roller to smooth the surface of the field and cover grass seed sown after 
spring rains. It is made in this wise: Lay two oak scantUngs, 3x3 inches 
square and three and one half feet long, parallel on ihe shop floor, three feet 
apart. Then spike a strip 2x2 and five feet long across two ends of the scant- 
ling; then four two-inch planks eight inches wide and five feet long, spikmg 

them on like clap-boarding, and 
finish with a plank fourteen inches 
wide for the front. Turn your 
crusher over, affix a stool for the 
driver and the chains to the cross- 
pieces for the team to draw by, and 
the implement is completed. 

Ixuprovement of Roads— A 
Good Scrapev._We would Hke 
to call the attention of all lovers of 
good roads, and especially of those who are overseers, to the importance of 
some system in constwicting and repairing public highways. 

In the first place, all roads should be made and kept rounding. The 
ditches at the side should be deep, and of such a grade that the water may 
quickly run off. A road constructed in this manner may be kept rounding 
for a number of years by the frequent use of the large A scraper, drawn by 
four horses abreast. Perhaps this important road implement in some dis- 





OLOD CRUSHER. 



252 



THE FARM. 



tricts is an unheard-of contrivance. Judging from the looks of many roads, 
we think it must be so, and for the benefit of overseers in such districts, we 
give a drawing on this page of the best large scraper we have ever seen. 
The scraper here represented is constructed of oak plank 11 feet long, 14 
inches wide, and 2 %-2 inches thick, set up edgeways, in shape of the letter 

A, with the top cut off. The 
rear cross-piece is near the end, 
and also near the top edge of 
the plank. The next is distant 
from the other 1 1-2 feet, and 2 
inches lower, for the purpose of 
allowing the guide-pole to pass 
over the rear one, and the end 
under the other, giving the 
other end the right length to 
take hold of. The front cross- 
piece is also near the end, and 
is the center of the plank. The 
rear end should be one foot 
tbroati the front any desired 
width. To the inside of the 
plank, at the lower edge, are 
bolted plates of cast iron 5 
inches wide and 1 1-2 inches 
thick, the holes through the 
same being slots longest up and 
down, that the iron may be low- 
ered as it wears away. The cut 
of the scraper may be altered 
by moving the draw-clevis in 
the chain to one side of the center, causing one side to do the whole work, 
as is many times necessary. The great advantage of this scraper over others 
is that it continually draws the dirt toward the center, and leaves the road 
perfectly smooth and rounding. 

A Sno-w Plow.- 

upou the forward 




A GOOD ROAD SCEAPER. 



-The snow plow here illustrated is built so as to be fixed 
part of a 



double sled. The frame is 
made of 4x4 oak scantling, and 
is similar in form to a double 
mold-board plow. One runner 
is fixed to the forward part, at 
such a distance below the edge 
of the plow as to raise it to 
clear obstacles such as stones 
or frozen mud which may be in 
its way. Four inches would 
probably in general be a safe distance. 




SNOW FLOW 

The hinder part of the plow rests 



upon the sled as shown in the engraving, and is bolted to i*.. A long tongue 
is fixed into the place of the ordinary one, and is fastened to the front of the 
plow by an iron strap, which is bolted to the frame. The hinder portion of 
the plow may be ccrvered over with boards, and a seat fi:xed firmly upon it. 
When it is used, it is best to load it as much as possible. The sides of the 



FARM IMPLEMENTS. 



253 



plow are made of half-inch oak or basswood strips, steamed and bent into 
8hape. The outer surface of these strips should be dressed smoothly, which 
will make the draft easier. 

Bag Holders. — Farmers who raise crops of cereals for market are well 

aware of the trouble and 

labor involved in the one 

operation of bag filling. 

It oftentimes happens that 

one person is required to 

hold open and fill the bag 

atthe same time; this, how- 
ever, is a slow and tedious 

process, and to expedite 

this important operation, 

at the same time render it 

less laborious, the bag 

holders shown in our illus- 
tration were invented. A 

proper size of the one de- 
lineated in Fig. 1 is platform 

K, 24x14x2 inches, either 

pine or oak; standard B, 

4x3x36 inches; hopper P, 

16x16 inches at the top, 

beveled to admit of the 

hooking thereon of the bag 

D, as shown. It is obvious 

that, by having the upper 

portion of the hopper of 

larger dimensions than the top or mouth of the bag, the operation of filling 

can be performed much quicker, and with less liability to spill the grain; the 

bag holder also dispenses with one hand. 

Fig. 2 illustrates a simple arrangement for the purpose. The hopper is 

of the si^e of that in Fig. 1. It is supported by three short straps or chains, 

R B B, attached to as many of its several sides, which in turn are attached at the 

point M. This bag holder 
is cheap, simple, portable, 
and durable. It can be at- 
tached to the granary wall, 
or any portion of the bam 
above the floor. By pro- 
viding the main chain M 
with a hook, it can be 
raised or lowered to ac- 
commodate bags of various 
lengths. 

HAND PLOW. 

Hand PIo^v. — Most 
vegetables are greatly benefitted by having the ground stirred frequently 
around them. Hoeing is a tedious operation both for time and patience. 

We give a drawing of a small shovel plow with a wheel set in the tram, 
which can be pushed like a wheelbarrow. When loosening the soil is the 
object, it is a very expeditious machine. The tram is made by screwing to- 




BAG HOLDEB8. 




264 THE FARM. 

gether pieces of hard wood boards. The wheel should have a ** broad 
tread " to prevent cutting in. A large cultivator tooth does tolerably well 
for a shovel. It works well for boy-power, by tying a drag rope to the end 
of the tram. With this a garden can be gone over in less than a fourth of the 
time required to hoe it, the same time may be given on different days with 
so much greater result, as the plowing is nearly as good as hoeing each time. 

Keep the Farm Tools Sharp— Too often these things are not thought 
of until the articles are wanted, when much valuable time is lost in putting 
in order what might as well have been done during the dull winter days. 
It has been computed that the same man can do as much in two days with a 
sharp scythe as in three days with one comparatively dull, and the same 
expenditure in force. And it is just the same in regard to all other tools or 
implements, whether operated by hand, steam, or horse power. The en- 
gineer continually oils the machinery, and a good saw or file is oil to hand 
implements. We know one who has a great deal of hand hoeing to do by 
hired labor, and he believes the continued lase of the file on the hoes makes 
a difiierence of nearly one-half in the labor. His calculation is that every 
ten-cent file he buys saves him ten dollars in his laborers' bills. Look after 
the spades, scythes, hoes, chisels, saws, etc. A good grindstone and a set 
of files are among the best of farm investments. The best of all forehanded- 
ness is that which prepares ia advance a full set of good and well-repaired 
tools to work with. 



AROUND THE FARM. 



Making and Keeping Ice. — The method of making and keepmg ice 
we here illustrate and describe will be of practical use oaly to those who 
are fortunate enough to have a spring or stream of running water upon their 
place; but the same result might be obtained by pumping in the water, 
though it would involve much more labor and trouble. 

The icehouse should be built firmly of rough boards, as shown in our 
illustration. Put high up on the outside of the house a penstock, with 
which connect, by means of a 
hollow plug, a tin pipe about 
two mches in diameter, on 
the inside, making a hole 
through the sidiQg for the 
purpose. This tm pipe may 
pass through the center of 
the icehouse, or it may be 
fastened to the side walls, 
passing partly or entirely 
around. If passing through 
the center, conical tubes 
similar to the muzzle of an 
oil can, about an inch in 
altitude, should be soldered 
on either side of the tin pipe 
so as to discharge jets at an 
angle of about 30 degrees to 
a perpendicular. If passing around the sides, cones should be so soldered 
on that the jets shall be thrown inward. The aperture through the apex of 
these cones should be very fine, about the size of a small pin. At the dis- 
charge end of this pipe, passing through or around the icehouse, should be 
fastened a rubber pipe of trom four to six feet in length. By raising the 
movable end of this rubber pipe we give whatever head we desire to the 
jets; in severe cold weather the greater head, and as the weather moderates 
less. Should it be thawing or too mild to freeze, then lower the rubber 
pipe so that the water will flow through the pipe without being discharged 
from the cones. For this purpose the pipe should have a gradual descent 
toward the discharge end. Should this not effectually prevent any water 
flowing on the ice, then bore a hole in the penstock below the pipe passing 
through the icehouse, and let the water discharge from this hole during 
mild weather. The jets may be within two feet of each other. Better re- 
sults attend a large number of fine jets than a less number discharging the 
same amount of water. In starting, the bottom of the icehouse should be 
covered with sawdust. The ice will form very slowly at first, but after the 
bottom is covered it will congeal more rapidly. After a sufficient quantity 
of ice has been formed, the sawdust may be put on, covering thickly around 




MAKING AND KEEPING ICE. 



266 



THE FA EM. 



the edges, so that as the ice melts the dust will fall down and protect it. Ice 
formed in this way will keep better than if sawed and packed in the usual 
way. We consider this mode of saving ice worth a practical test by all who 
have running water and sufficient fall. 

Wliitewasli for "Biiildiiigs and Fences. — If people knew how easily 
whitewash is made, and how valuable it is when properly applied, it would 
be in more general requisition. It not only prevents the decay of wood, but 
conduces greatly to the healthfuluess of all buildings, whether of wood or 
stone. Out-buildings and fences when not painted, should be suppUed once 

or twice a year with a good 
coat of whitewash, which 
should be prepared in the 
following way: Take a 
clean, water-tight barrel, 
or other suitable cask, and 
put into it a half-bushel of 
Hme. Slake it by pouring 
water over it boiling hot, 
and in sufficient quantity 
to cover it five inches deep, 
and stir it briskly till thor- 
oughly slaked. When the 
slaking has been thorough- 
ly effected, dissolve it in 
water and add two pounds 
of sulphate of zinc and one 
of common salt; these will 
cause the wash to harden 
and prevent its cracking, 
which gives an unseemly 
appearance to the work. 
If desirable, a beautiful 
cream color may be com- 
municated to the above 
wash by adding three 
pounds of yelloAV ochre; or 
a good pearl of lead color 
by the addition of lamp, 
vine, or ivory black. For 

fawn color, add four pounds of umber, Turkish or American— the latter is 

the cheaper— one pound of Indian red, one pound of common lamp-black. 

For common stone color, add four pounds of raw umber and two pounds of 

lamp-black. 

Smoke Houses._Our first illustration. Fig. 1, represents a smoke house 
built of brick, 6x7 feet square, and suitable for a large farm. The bottom is 
excavated the size of the building, two feet deep, filled in with small stones, 
and on this a brick floor, well cemented, is laid. This insures dryness. 
The walls are of brick, eight inches thick and seven feet high, with a small 
door on one side, lined on the inside with sheet-iron or zinc. Hooks should 
be firmly attached to the joists, on which to hang the hams and shoulders. 
This style of smoke house is not very expensive, is safe from'fire, and when 




SMOKE HOUSE.- -FIG. 1. 



ARO UND THE FA R M. 



257 




SMOKE HOUSE. — FIG. 2. 



not in use for smoking meat, is an excellent receptacle for ashes, which 
ought never to be kept in 
contact with wood, on ac- 
count of the danger from 
spontaneous combustion. 

Our next illustration, Fig. 
2, represents one of the best 
arranged smoke houses that 
we have ever seen. It 
was large and built of brick, 
with an iron door which is 
generally kept locked. In 
the gable end there is a tire- 
place with a door. "A" 
shows the fireplace with 
door, for making the smoke, 
a chimney leading up on the 
inside of the wall letting the 
smoke into the room. The 
advantage of this arrange- 
ment is that the fire for 
smoking is built without en- 
tering the building, and sim- 
ply by opening the door of 

the fireplace. The smoke passing up the chimney on the interior side of the 

wall is cooled, and thus the 
meat does not come in con- 
tact with heat from fire. In 
the ordinary smoke-house, 
as is well known, the pieces 
of meat often break loose 
from their fastenings and 
fall into the fire or ashes 
underneath, and are in- 
jured or destroyed. In this 
plan the ash room may bo" 
partitioned off and the meat 
kept in a room by itself, 
and the door being always 
kept locked, except at such 
times as the meat is de- 
sired for the table, there is 
no chance of loss from 
thieves or flies. One can 
keep meat in this house in 
perfect condition from one 
end of the year to the other, 
and no losses can accrue 
from any soiirce. 

For those who want a 
cheap, easily made smoke 
house, our illustration, Fig. 3, will meet the requirement. It is made in a 
flight rise of ground, by an archway of brick, at the lower end of which the 




^^E^«^ 



SMOKE HOUSE. — FIG. 



258 THE FA EM, 

fire is made, while at the upper end is placed a barrel or box containing the 
hams and other meat to be cured. The lower end is closed after the fire is 
well started, to prevent a too rapid burning of the corn cobs or other ma- 
terial used in smoking the meat, and also to direct the smoke to the upper 
orifice for escape. 

Ensilage.— This Avord, which is only a"few years old, grows out of the 
discovery made by a Frenchman, Auguste Goffart, that green crops, when 
stored in water-tight pits called silos, under a heavy pressure, do not rot, 
but are preserved fresh and sweet, and retain all their nutritive juices for a 
year or more; and that, when ofiered to cattle in this condition, in the win- 
ter, are preferred to any dry food. It is not surprising that the discovery 
made a sensation among farmers and cattle feeders in this country, and that 
there is exhibited a keen desire to know all about it; for, not only can a great 
deal more in weight, of green food than dry, be raised on an acre, but ensi- 
lage possesses the advantage of supplying cattle with succulent summer 
feed in the winter — an advantage of great value to milch cattle. Any green 
crop that stock are fond of when in a growing state is good material for ensi- 
lage—grass, clover, i-ye, young com, sorghum and vegetables; but corn, 
clover and the grasses are most generally used, because when growing they 
are full of juice, which is lost in curing into hay or fodder, but preserved in 
the silo. Several kinds of green crops may be packed in the same silo, and 
the ensilage is said to be improved by the variety. Corn, either drilled or 
cultivated or sown broadcast, and cut in its most juicy condition, is the basis 
of most ensilage experiments in this country; it may be packed in the same 
silo with clover or grass of any kind cut green, and successive crops of corn 
may be planted for mixture with different kinds of grasses in their season. 
As it is estimated that ten to twenty tons weight of green crops may be cut 
from an acre of good soil — five to ten times as much as the weight of a dry 
crop of grain or hay — it is easy to see how much more profitable it is to save 
green crops in the form of ensilage than to allow them to mature and dry. 
Col. J. "W. Wolcott, of Boston, who owns a farm near that city, raised 460 
tons of ensilage on thirty-four acres — being fourteen tons to the acre — one 
year. By raising two crops on the same soil ho has gathered as much as 
twenty-one tons per acre. On one piece of ground he gathered thirty-one 
tons per acre, but " that com was fourteen feet high," he says. He adds: 
" I am satisfied that an acre of ground will keep a cow twenty-four months." 

When the silo is opened in winter the contents are found in a sort of 
cheesy condition, and require to be sliced off with a sharp axe. They have 
undergone a slow and slight fermentation which does not impair theii" merits 
as feed and is not offensive to cattle. Indeed, the first smell of ensilage 'is 
said to *' set cattle wild for it," and they prefer it to any other kind of feed. 

Silos are variously constructed. The usual plan is to dig pits ten feet 
wide, fifteen feet deep, and as long as may be desired, on sloping ground, 
and make them water-tight with cement. Mr. C. W. Mills, of Pompton, New 
Jersey, prefers to build a strong frame, boarded up tight and close with 
thick lumber, entirely above the ground, something in the fashion of an ice 
house. The gi-een crops may be packed into them, either whole or cut up 
with a cutter; each plan has its advocates, though the weight of -opinion is 
in favor of cutting, as it allows of closer packing. As the crops are thrown 
in they are tread down as closely near the edges as possible, and when the 
silo is full it is covered and weighted Avith heavy rocks or earth, and then 
shedded over to protect it from the weather, In a few weeks the ensilage is 



AHOUN^D THE FARM. 259 

' ' ripe " aud ready for use. One end of the silo, if built along the ground, may 
be opened and the ensilage cut out and fed as it is wanted. Its quaUty will 
depend on the crops of which it is made and the care with which they are 
packed away. Nearly all Miimals will eat it; cattle hke it and thrive on it, 
and for milch cows it is particularly valuable, as it increases their flow of 
milk and keeps them in cheerful, healthy condition. 

"What Goes witli a Farm.— When a farm is bought or sold, questions 
often arise as to what goes with it, and disputes may often be avoided if 
farmers know just what their farm deeds inckide. In brief, says Mr. Haigh, 
of the Detroit bar, m the American Agrioulturist, where no reservations are 
made in the deed, the conveyanae includes the land, the buildmgs upon it, 
and all such chattels or articles as have become so attached or fixed to the 
soil or to the buildings, as to become what is known in law as " fixtures." 
What constitutes a fixture depends largely on the intention of the owner in 
putting it there, and also upon the manner in which it is affixed. Anything 
so affixed to the roll or the buildings that it cannot be removed without in- 
jury nearly always goes with the farm, and anything of a permanent nature, 
fitted for permanent use, and annexed thereto by the owner with that inten- 
tion, generally goes with the land, though it might be severed without any 
injury, as the following examples will illustrate: All fences on the farm go 
without, but not fencing materials, as rails, etc.; if bought elsewhere and 
piled upon the farm, and not yet built into a fence, they have never yet been 
" annexed." But rails built from timber standing on the farm and piled up 
for future use go with it; their original annexation is not severed by being 
•hanged from standing trees to rails. If, however, they were cut with the 
intention of using them elsewhere than on the farm, they would then hd per- 
sonal property and would not pass. The bare intention in the mind of the 
owner in this instance makes the difference between real estate and personal 
property. Hop poles, if they have once been used upon the farm, are re- 
garded as a part of it, though at the time of sale they are stored away for 
future use. Loose scaffold poles, however, laid across the beams of a bam, 
have been held not to be a part of the realty. Standing trees, of coui-se, are 
a part of the farm; so are trees cut or blown down, if left where they fall, 
but not if corded up for sale; the wood has then become personal property. 

To Tan Hides. — We think that many farmers would tan sheep and other 
skins, with the hair and wool on, if they were told how. They are very con- 
venient for sleighs, wagons, house rugs, and many other purposes. We give 
the followmg from a reliable source, remarking that it is essentially the same 
that we found in use by the trappers and hunters in the wilderness: All 
fatty and fleshy matter should first be removed from the skin, and with 
sheep skins the wool should be washed clean with soft soap and water, and 
the suds be thoroughly rinsed out. For each skin take four ounces of salt, 
four ounces of alum, and half an ounce of borax; dissolve these in one quart 
of hot water, and when cool enough for the hand to bear, stir in sufficient 
rye meal to make a thick paste. This paste is to be spread thoroughly over 
every part of the flesh side of the skin, which is then to be folded together 
lengthwise, and left for two weeks in an airy place. Then remove the paste, 
wash and dry the skin, "When nearly dry, it must be worked and pulled, 
and scraped with a blunt knife made for the purpose, shaped like a chopping 
knife, or with a piece of hard wood worked to a sharp edge. The more the 
skin is worked and scraped as it dries, the more pliable it will be. Other 
furs can be tanned with the fur on. 



'AGO 



THE FABM 




TUAP FI'^ 



Weasel, Rat, and Vermin Traps. — The comm5u steel rat-trap is fre- 
quently used with good success in destroying these vermin, but we givei 
herewith an engravmg of a trap in this connection (Fig. 1), which we think 
will be found more effectual, and it is so simple^ju its construction that any 
one can make it. The trap consists of an oblong box, the end of which draws 
out, and is provided with a looking-glass in the internal side, which attracts 
the vermin on looking in. The entrance of the trap is formed of two spring 
doors made of wire, which allow the vermin to enter with least pressure. 

These doors have sharp 
points where they meet, 
which, although not felt by 
the vermin when entering, 
will prevent it fi'om with- 
drawing after having once 
introduced its head. Near 
to the looking glass a bait is 
suspended, and a cage is also 
fixed with a chicken to serve 
as a decoy. These traps are 
self-setting, simple, inexpensive, fit for all sizes of vermin, and safe for the 
house, farm-yard, or game preserve. 

We also give an illustration of another trap (Fig. 2), which can be easily 
made by any person conversant with the use of a saw, hammer and nails. 
The top and bottom of the trap are made of oak board one inch thick and 
twenty inches square. It is divided into two parts, making really two distinct 
traps. The corners are of wire about one-quarter of an inch in diameter, 
and the sides and partitions of No. 7 wire. Holes are bored both top and 
bottom, and the wires inserted. The corner wires are riveted, holding the 
trap firmly together; the doors are of oak, three quarters of an inch thick, 
and are kept in place by a cross wire on the top board of the trap, and by 
two small staples near the bottom 
edge of the door, which slide on the 
upright wires on each side. The 
treadle X is also oak, working on 
the upright pin 0, as a fulcrum, 
and being held in place by the wire 
hook V working on a pivot at P, and 
on the lower end of which the bait 
is placed. One side of the trap is 
represented as set, the other as 
sprung. 




Trapping the Minlt, Skunk, 



TRAP— FIG. 2. 



Etc.— Next to the weasel, the mink is most dreaded among poultry. In 
localities near salt marshes, swamps, ponds, and sluggish streams they most 
abound. The ravages of the mink are easily told from those of the weasel 
or any other animal. He almost always carries off a portion of his prey and 
tries to secrete it. If you find a half-grown chicken or old fowl dead and 
dragged wholly or partly into a stone wall or under some building, you may 
be certain it is the work of a mink; and if you go to work right, you will be 
just as certain to trap him. 

One peculiarity of the animal makes his capture easy — he always returns 
to a spot where he has hidden his quarry, or where he has made a raid; and 



AROUND THE FARM. 



261 



if he misses it, will go searching around for it. A knowledge of this fact led 
to the invention some years since of the trap we now illustrate. It is un- 
patented and our readers our free to make and use it. 

The trap should be three feet long, one foot wide, and one foot high, out- 
side measurement, and may be made of ordinary faced pine boards. 

Nis the on\j solid part of the top, to Avhich is hinged the lids L and D, 
and also in which the standard S is mortised. The lid L is held up by the 
rod A, in which are one or more notches to elevate it the desired height, 
catching or hooking over the pin B, and projecting a few inches beyond. 
Under A, and hinged into the standard by the pin P, is the lever T, also pro- 
jecting an inch or more beyond. C is a treadle board, hinged at Y to the 
bottom of the trap, and connecting by the Aviro W to the lever T, elevating it 
about two inches when set. H is the hail box, separated from the main trap 
by a wire screen, XX. O is a window, of which there should be one on each 
side about three or four inches square, also covered with wire or wire cloth, 
and D is the Ud of the bait box, fastened down by the pin E. 

If you have a chicken or fowl that has been killed by the mink a night or 
two preceding put that into the bait box and close the lid, placing the trap as 
near the spot where the dead fowl was found as you can. If a Uve fowl is 
put in, no harm can be done to it, the screen effectually protecting it. The 
mink enters the trap, and 
as soon as his weight gets 
well up on the treadle 
it pulls down the lever T, 
the projecting end of 
which dislodges the rod A, 
and drops the hd L. It is 
best to have a weiglii upon 
L, or else a catch to hold it 
down when sprung, as we 
have known an old mink to 
pry up the lid and get out. 

We have never known this trap to raiss when set immediately succeeding 
the depredations of one of those varminls. 

Next to the mink, the skunk is the most destructive to poultry. The 
best way to trap him is with eggs, of which they are passionately fond. 
They are not particular about the qnolily, as they seem to favor a rotten one, 
or one with a dead chicken in it. Tie the egg in a piece of netting, and fasten 
it to the treadle of a steel trap, or to a common box trap. Find their burrow, 
and set your trap near the mouth. It is nearly useless to set a trap where a 
theft has been committed. The animal may not go back there for months. 
He might possibly be caught in a night or two. But the chances are against it. 

Crows and hawks are to be classed among the enemies of poultry. The 
former prey only on young chickens and eggs. Catch one and hang it in 
your poultry yard; no other crow will come near it. The quickest and surest 
trap for crows is to place a steel trap in the shallow water of a pond, so that 
the jaws when open, are just under water. On the treadle place a small tuft 
of grass or moss, making a miniature island." Then cut a small stick with 
three bi:anches, forking in such a manner as to support an egg on them; 
stick this about six or eight inches from the trap; lay a little moss, grass, or 
leaves over it, and place the egg on the forks, so it will appear as if floating 
on the water; cover the remainder of the trap hghtly with grass, so as to 
hide it from sight, for Mr. Crow is very observant. To obtain the egg the 




A MINK TRAP. 



262 



THE FARM. 



crow will light oti the " island," and find too late be is caught. When hawks 
are troublesome the only remedy is to shoot them. You will soon notice 
that he visits your yard about a certain time every day, and by Avatching for 
him you can soon rid yourself of the troublesome visitor— of course provided 
you are a good shot. 

Trapping Ground 3Ioles. — We give an illustration upon this page of a 
very good and simple trap that may be successfully used in catching that 
troublesome little pest, the ground mole. It is made of two ash boards, a 
full inch in thickness, seven inches in width, and two feet six inches long, 
attached to one end by a broad butt hinge. The form given to the bottom 
board is shown in the cut, the central slit being made to admit the free play 
of the trigger, which is represented by itself in the right-hand corner of the 
sketch. It is of iron, ten inches long; the lower pai't shaped like a paddle, 
five inches long, one and one-eighth inches wide, and the left-hand end, 
notched as shown, and three-quarters of an inch wide perpendicularly. The 
post, sixteen inches high, is curved to the circular sweep of the rop board on 
its hinge. The teeth, six in number, on each side, are riveted seven-eighths 

of an inch apart, in a 
plate five and one- 
fourth inches long and 
one inch wide, contain- 
ing four screw holes, 
placed zigzag, and thiw 
is found much firmer 
and more secure than 
if the teeth were in- 
serted directly in the 
upper plank. The trap 
is set, as shown in the 
cut, across a mole 
track, first digging a 
hole eight inches square 
and six inches deep, 
and returning the soil, taking care to exclude all stones and large pebbles. 
Press the earth down pretty firmly, and set the trap so that the trigger 
touches the surface oi the ground exactly over the line of the track. When 
the mole goes along his accustomed road, and finds it obstructed, his move- 
ments in reopening the track inevitably heaves up the surface, so as to set 
off the trigger, and the teeth on one side or the other will catch him. Weight 
the trap with a heavy flat stone. 

Ridding tlie Land of Stumps.— We have frequently noticed persons 
when dealing land make a brush pile over a green stump, with the expecta- 
tion, apparently, that they were pursuing the right course to effectually rid 
the land of its presence immediately, while in fact no better means could be 
resorted to in order to insure its indefinite preservation. It has been the 
experience of the writer that a stump should never be fired until it has be- 
come sufiiciently " seasoned " to insure its entire consumption, else the 
charred remnant becomes impervious to the action of the elements, and it 
will remain a troublesome customer to deal with for long years after. 

These thoughts are suggested from a quite recent experience in dealing 
with some very " old settlers," which the hands on the farm wished to fire 




A GOOD MOLE TRAP. 



AROUND THE FARM. 



268 



several years back, and were only prevented from doing so by a positive 
command to the contrary. By a little patient Avaiting we are gratified with 
seeing " the places which once knew them, know them no more forever." 
This is one plan of treatment. 

Martin Boxes. — The box-house does very well if made of any small box 
about fifteen inches square (which can be had of any grocer), w*th a division 
put in it so that two families can inhabit it. A square hole should be sawed 
out at the bottom edge opposite each 
division, and the bottom nailed on. 
Place the box on a pole from twelve to 
fifteen feet high, or on the gable end of 
a roof, or even in a tree, and your 
house is finished. It can be painted 
or not, or even made in fancy designs, 
which are quite attractive to the eye. 
The illustration given on this page will 
convey the idea. A hop, or other 
rapid-growing climber, if planted at 
the bottom of the pole, will chmb up 
it and cause it too look quite orna- 
mental and picturesque. We have 
seen them built two stories high, made 
like a diminutive gothic cottage, which 
is quite pretty. The house should be 
made before the martins come, aa 
they are genei-ally in a hurry to locate 
and go to " housekeeping." By all 
means give them some kind of a home. 

Cisterns. — Many who have cisterns 
and depend upon them for their sup- 
ply of water for family use, hardly 
realize the importance of keeping them 
sweet and clean. Eain water as it 
comes down from the clouds is prob- 
ably as pure as any water can be, but 
after it has washed over a roof and 
down the conductors into the cisteni, 
carr3dng with it dust, leaves, and other 
rubbish that may have gathered on the 
roof or in the gutters, it is not strange 
that the cistern should need to be maktin box. 

cleaned out every year or two. If the cistern is not much used the water is 
quite Ukely to become bad. It may look all right, and not taste very bad 
either, and yet not be healthful. Of course all cistern water should be 
filtered, and a soft brick filter is perhaps the best; but even then it will be- 
come necessary to clean the cistern as often as every two years, and better 
every year. 

To Purify Cisterns — -Throw in two ounces powdered alum and two 
ounces borax to a twenty barrel cistern of rain water that is blackened or 
oily, and in a few hours the sediment will settle, and the water will be clari- 
fied and fit for washing 




Sfi't THE FARM. 

sjilos and Ensilage— The new system of preserving and feeding ensi- 
lage, says an intelligent writer, is one of such simplicity that doubting minds 
are incredulous as to possible results. If the building of a silo and the sub- 
: sequent process of filhng with ensilage were some wonderful secret, or per- 
haps a new discovery protected by a series of patents— if the use of the sys- 
tem were nermitted only under the payment of heavy royalties — there is a 
• class of skeptical minds who fatten on uncertain quahties, and who have but 
little faith in any practice which is within the reach of persons of ordinary 
intelligence and common sense. It is difldcult for many minds to realize the 
facts claimtid for ensilage or to explain to themselves why such results 
should be secured by processes so simple and by apportions so economical. 
Yet proof, absolute demonstration, is within the reach of every inquiring 
mind, or of every enterprising farmer who is willing to spend fifty dollars 
for commencing experiments upon his own farm. 

It is a most singular fact that the doubting minds are those who have 
had no practical experience on the subject, but whose conservatism is on 
the parade. It is eqxially surprising that no intelligent, practical attempt at 
silo building or ensilage feeding has resulted in failure, although men of all 
classes and attainments have experimented Avith the new system. It would 
be reasonable to expect many failures among so many beginners of varying 
capacities, were there anything intricate or uncertain in the process and its 
auxiliaries. No authority in this country is competent to pronounce posi- 
tively upon the future success or failure of this new system; it is for the in- 
terest of no one to urge or induce the adoption of the system by any unwill- 
ing farmer, and no one is to be enriched by the multiplication of silos, 
except, perhaps, the individual owners. Many a conservative farmer will 
await the report of his more enterprising neighbor, who has built a silo, yet 
it is certain that before many years every one will have an opportunity to 
judge the merits and drawbacks of the system of ensilage. 

Ne^v "Way with a Silo. — A Massachusetts fanner records his experi- 
ence as follows: We had always raised more or less Indian com, using the 
stalks for wintering our hmited number of cattle. After increasing our herd 
we planted fodder corn to help out our stock of corn stalks. However, the 
hard labor attendmg the cutting, binding, shocking, and curing the fodder 
made us willing investigators of the new and highly recommended system 
of ensilage feeding. From all who had constructed silos and tested ensilage 
we heard uniformly favorable reports. We could not learn of a failure, 
hence v^-q determined to test ensilage for ourselves, only hesitating on ac- 
count of the probable labor and expense attending the erection and weight- 
ing of a stone silo. 

Learning that wooden silos found favor with some farmers who pro- 
nounced them equally as good, so long as they lasted, as the more costly , 
stone affairs, we determined upon constructing our silo of wood. Our barn 1 
is a two-story building, measuring 40x80 feet. It contains several large- 
bays, the dimensions of which are 20x24 feet. We sealed up one of these 
bays with 1 1-4 inch matched spruce boards covered with tarred paper. We 
cemented the bottom of the silo, also the walls under the sills of the bam. 
We coated the inside of the silo with coal oil to prevent the effects of mois- 
ture upon the boards. 

We stored about 125 tons of corn fodder in the silo, treading it down by 
men, instead of horses, by reason of the small size of the silo. We were 
about three weeks storing the whole of our fodder on account of the lack of 



ABO UNI) THE FA B M. 



265 





EUSTIC SEAT. — FIG. 1. 



help. For covering the silo we used hemlock boards and tarred paper, no 

other weighting being applied nntil some three or 

four weeks later, when we stored a quantity of dry 

corn stalks upon the top of the silo. Upon opening 

the silo we found the fodder in a perfect state of pre- 

sei'vation, the ensilage showing no mold, except a 

little on top, just under the cover. In preparing the 

fodder, wo employed a two-horse power to run our 

cutter, the latter being provided with a carrier for 

delivering the fodder in the silo. 

liHSf ic Seats for tlie La^vii. — The garden and 

lawn are incompletely furnished if they are not sup- 
plied with some kind of seats whereon one may 

reoline at ease. Fortunately these seats need 

not be costly; it would, indeed, show bad tis^te to 

have them so. 
Something easy, 
graceful, fan- 
tastic, rustic — 

something that the sunshine or the 
wind will not harm, or have its beauty 
destroyed by the rain. The materials 
for such seals are nearly always at 
hand — at least on every farmer's prem- 
ises. All that is required is a little 
skill and patience to construct them. 
The branches of the trees may be bent 
and shaped into tasteful chairs, and 
any desired form given to them. The 
branches of the red cedar tree and wild 
grape vine furnish the best of material 
for this style of rustic seat. Our illus- 
tration. Fig. 1, shows a very pretty chair 

made in this manner. A few pine boards cut out and nailed together, 

represented in the engraving. Fig. 2, 

will form a cheap and convenient 

rustic seat, which will be admired 

for its very simplicity and quaintness. 
A favorite shade tree on the lawn 

may be surrounded with seats so at- 
tached that one in sitting may lean 

against the trunk Our illustration, 

Fig. 3, will give a good idea of how 

seats of this kind may be constructed. 
Of materials there are plenty 

around almost every homestead- 
tasteful labor only is wanting to 

make appropriate rustic seats. The 

position of such seats is worthy of 

consideration. As they are mainly 

intended for use in warm weather, 

they should be amply shaded. A PUSTIO ISEAT,— Fia, 3, 



BUSTIO SEAT. — ^FIG 




266 THE FARM, 

position should be chosen that commands a good prospect — if not a distant 
landscape, then of the beauties of the lawn and the flower garden. Some, 
at least, should be screened from observation by shrubbery — fragrant if pos- 
sible — where one may read or work. It is during the warmer months that 
the garden and lawn offer their greatest attractions, and everything that 
tends to make them more enjoyable should be provided. 

How to Pre:^ei-^e Cider. — A pure, sweet cider is only obtainable from 
clean, sound fruit, and the fruit should, therefore, be carefully examined 
and wiped before grinding. 

In the press use hair cloth or gunny in place of straw. As the cider runs 
from the press let it pass through a hair sieve into a large open vessel, that 
will hold as much juice as can be expressed in one day. In one day, or 
sometimes less, the pomace will rise to the top, and iu a short time grow 
very thick. When little white bubbles break through it draw off the hquid 
through a very small spigot placed about three inches from the bottom, so 
that the lees may be left behind. The cider must be drawn off into very 
clean, sweet casks, preferably fresh liquor casks, and closely watched. The 
moment the white bubbles before mentioned are perceived lising at the 
buughole, rack it again. It is tisually necessary to repeat this three times. 
Then fill up the cask with cider iu every respect like that originally contained 
in it, add a tumbler of warm sweet oil and bung up tight. For very fine 
cider it is customary to add at this stage of this process about half a pound 
of glucose (starch sugar), or a smaller portion of white sugar. The cask 
should then be allowed to remain in a cool place until the cider has acquired 
the desired flavor. 

In the meantime, clean barrels for its reception should be prepared, as 
follows: Some clean strips of rags are dipped in melted sulphiir, lighted and 
burned in the bunghole and the bung laid loosely on the end of the rag so 
as to retain the sulphur vapor within the barrel. Then tie up half a pound 
of mustard seed in a coarse muslin bag and put it in the barrel, fill the bar- 
rel with cider, and add about a quarter of a pound of ismglass or fine gela- 
tine dissolved in hot water. This is the old fashioned way, and will keep 
cider in the same condition as when it went into the barrel, if kept in a cool 
place, for a year. 

Professional cider makers are now tising calcium sulphite (sulphite of 
lime) instead of mustard and sulphur vapor. It is much more convenient 
and effectual. To use it, it is simply reqiiisite to add one-eighth to one- 
quarter of an ounce of the sulphite to each gallon of cider iu the cask, first 
mixing the powder in about a quart of the cider, and giving the latter a 
thorough shaking or rolling. After standing bunged several days to allow 
the sulphite to exert its full action it may be bottled oft'. The sulphite of 
lime (which should not be mistaken for the sulphate of lime) is a commer- 
cial article, costing about forty cents a pound by the barrel. It will preserve 
the sweetness of the cider perfectly; but iinless care is taken not to add too 
much of it, it will impart a slight sulphurous taste to the cider. The 
bottles and corks used should be '^perfectly clean, and the corks wired 
down. 

A Little cinnamon, wintergreen or sassafras, etc., is often added to sweet 
cider m the bottle, together with a dram or so of bi-carbonate of soda at the 
moment of driving the stopper. This helps to neutralize free acids, and 
renders the liquid effervescent Avhen unstopped; but if used to excess, it 
may prejudicially affect the taste. 



AROUND THE FA EM. 267 

WTiat Birds Accomplisli — The swallow, swift, and hawk are the 
guardians of the atmosphere. They check the increase of insects that other- 
Avise would overload it. Woodpeckers, creepers, and chickadees are the 
guardians of the trunks of trees. Warblers and flycatchers protect the foli- 
age. Blackbirds, crows, thrushes, and larks protect the surface of the soil. 
Suipe and woodcock protect the soil under the surface. Each tribe has its 
respective duties to perform in the economy of nature, and it is an undoubted 
fact that if the birds were all swept off the face of the earth man Qould not 
live upon it, vegetation would wither and die; insects would become so 
numerous that no living being could withstand their attacks. The whole- 
sale destruction occasioned by grasshoppers Avhich have devastated the 
West is to a great extent, perhaps, caused by the thinning out of the birds, 
such as grouse, prairie hens, etc., which feed upon them. The great and in- 
estimable service done to the farmer, gardener, and florist by the birds is 
only becoming known by sad experience. Spare the birds and save the fruit; 
the little corn and fruit taken by them is more than compensated by the 
quantities of noxious insects they destroy. The long-persecuted crow has 
been found by actual experience to do more good by the vast quantities of 
grubs and insects he devoiirs than the harm he does in the grains of corn he 
pulls up. He is, after all, rather a friend than an enemy to the farmer. 

Recipe for Curing Meat. — To one gallon of water take one and one- 
half pounds of salt, one-half pound sugar, one-half ounce saltpetre, one- 
half ounce potash. In this ratio the pickle can be increased to any quantity 
desired. Let these be boiled together until all the dirt from the sugar rises 
to the top and is skimmed off. Then throw it into a tub to cool, and when 
cold pour it over your beef or pork. The meat must be well covered with 
pickle, and should not be put down for at least two days after killing, dur- 
ing which time it should be slightly sprinkled with powdered saltpetre, 
which removes all the surface blood, etc., leaving the meat fresh and clean. 
Somd omit boiling the pickle, and find it to answer well, though the opera- 
tion of boiling purified the pickle by throwing off the dirt always to be found 
in salt and sugar. If this recipe is strictly followed, it will require only a 
single trial to prove its superiority over the common way, or most Avays of 
putting down meat, and Avill not soon be abandoned for any other. The 
meat is Unsurpassed for sweetness, delicacy, and freshness of color. 

Value of Drainage. — As a matter of fact there is very little land in our 
country that would not be improved by drainage. Many light soils are 
springy, and the crops are injured in them by stagnant water. Heavy land 
can never do its best until drained. Vast areas of low-lying but rich land 
are practically valueless for Avant of drains to carry off the redundant mois- 
ture which forbids the growth of any but aquatic plants. Many who admit 
the importance of this improvement are puzzled about the ways and means 
of effecting it. The Drainage Journal mentions the folloAvdng plan, which is 
well worthy of serious consideration: " Some enterprising tile manufacturers 
select careful farmers who own flat lands, and make them something like 
the following proposition: That the farmer make a careful estimate of his 
average crops, and the tile manufacturer proposes to furnish the tile neces- 
sary to drain thoroughly the lands designated in the agreement, the farmer 
to furnish the labor of putting in the drains at a stipulated price, to be paid 
out of the excess of crops grown on the land over and above the average 
yield before agreed upon, and the tile manufacturer agreeing to take the 



THE FARM. 



balance of the increase in four or five crops (as agreed) to cover the cost of 
the tile. On level lauds, where the average crop runs low and the laud by 
nature is rich, it is a safe proposition for the tile manufacturer, if the farmer 
honestly performs his part of the contract. On rich level lands that need 
drainage, and need it badly, it will pay twenty-five per cent, annually on the 
investment, and in some instances more." 

Rustic Garden Hoiise._No accessories to the garden add more to its 
beauty and comfort than pleasant, comfortable seats and resting places. 
They may be composed of a few sticks, forming a simple seat under the 
shade of some tree, or may be made in the form of rustic houses. Simpli- 
city, however, must not be lost sight of, and no foolish attempt should be 
made to eclipse the simple beauty of nature by any expensive display of art. 
In our. travels on the Hudson we once stopped at the beautiful garden of 
A. J. Downing, and after admiring the fine specimen trees it contained, and 
surveying the finely-kept lawn, we found ourselves reclining in a pretty rua- 



^'^^% 




tic house, a view of which 
is given in the engraving 
on this page, and we now 
present it as a model for 
this kind of work. A lit- 
tle patience and taste 
and a very few tools vdW 
enable one with ordinary 
mechanical skill to erect 
such a house at leisure 
times, almost without 
cost. 



How to Make Sorgo 
Vinegar. — A corre- 
spondent writing from 
Loutre Island, Mo., in the 
Rural World, tells how 
he made 1,000 gallons of 
No. 1 vinegar mostly from 
sorgo skimmings. He says: "Of course the first skimmings arc not used. 
I had two 160-gallon tubs. Into these I put about 70 gallons of apple pomace 
(cider and all), 25 to 30 gallons of skimmings, according to thickness, then 
filled up with rain water. I let it remain for two or three days, then drew it 
off and put in a large 1,000-gallon cask, which I finished filling by the latter 
part of October. Next spring I drew it off in 40-gallon barrels, put them in 
a warm j^lace where the sun shone on them part of the day, and I soon had 
the very best of vinegar. The above casks were in an o it-house where it 
was as cold as out of doors. Of course it had no time to sour that fall, as 
Avintcr set in early in November; consequently freezing did not hurt it, 
though it should not freeze after once becoming sour. Pressed or dry po- 
mace is just as good, only add skimmings and water for the cider taken. 
Vinegar made this way is better, I think, than when made of sorgo alone. It 
can hardly be detected from pure cider vinegar, and is just as good. Bear in 
mind that only enough water should be added to reduce the strength of the 
skimmings to about that of cider. You need saccharine to make good vinegar. 
You can't make vinegar from a few apple peelings and a barrel of rain water." 



RUSTIC GARDEN HOUSE. 



AROUND THE FARM. 



Blasting Stumps. — The foUowiug is the modus operandi of blasting 
stumps with dynamite: Make a hole an inch in diameter near the stumj), 
inclining at an angle of about forty-five degrees, so as to reach underneath 
the body of the stump. This hole may be made with a crowbar through the 
soil, but if there be a large deep tap-root it will be necessary to continiie the 
hole into the body of the tap-root by means of a long auger. A cartridge 
containing three or four ounces of dynamite is then inserted to the bottom of 
the hole, and a slow match having a peculiar percussion cap on the end is 
inserted in the cartridge. The hole is then tampered with earth, and when 
all is ready the outer end of the match is lighted, and the operator retires to 
a safe distance. The explosion usually not only extracts the stump from 
the ground, but tears it into pieces small enough to handle easily. The 
dynamite costs about forty cents per jjound, so that a three or four ounce 
charge, with its fuse, would cost about ten cents— making the cost of blow- 
ing up a stump about ten cents, besides the labor. 

How to Thatcli Roofs. — Rye straw threshed with a flail and kept 
straight, with the short 
or broken straws raked 
out, is the best material. 
The roof is made ready 
for thatching by nailing 
strips of boards, say one 
by two inches, across the 
rafters, putting them a 
foot apart. The pitch 
should be steep, to in- 
sure a waterproof and 
durable roof. The straw 
should be cut to a uni- 
foi-m length, and care 
taken to have it straight 
and all right. The 
sketch shows how the 

roof is prepared for the straw, and the manner the courses are laid. Tie 
the straw in bundles that will average six inches in thickness. The band 
should be close to the upper end, the one which is fastened to the cross 
strip. The courses should overlap, so as to make the roof the thickness of 
three bundles. 

Fish Culture for the Farm. — No farm should be without a fish pond, 
well stocked, any more than it should be without poultry. This may be a 
startling announcement to farmers who have to go one hundred feet to 
water, but it is none the less practical, as much as to keep stock on such a 
farm. Water must be produced in either instance. On most farms the 
drainage is favorable to ponds by throwing a dam across some sag or ravine 
and retaining the water that would naturally run off. The pond would 
serve the purpose of both stock and fish. Where this plan is not practicable, 
a pump worked by a wind-mill will ansAver as well if kept running; the sur- 
plus water drained into an artificial pond would supply the water. The 
pond should be at least eight feet deep in the center. This would give the 
fish an opportunity to place themselves beyond the reach of ice. A pond of 
fifty feet in diameter would accommodate a reasonable supply of fish for an 




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m 


i! 


1 '31 


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HOW TO THATCH BOOFS. 



270 THE FARM, 

ordinary family if the fish are properly fed. Perhaps there is no fish so well 
calculated for tliis character of farming as the carp. It feeds on vegetables, 
and in its habits has about the relation to an ordinary game fish that the 
farm yard fowl has to the game fowl. 

A Snggestioii for Drainage— A Missouri farmer relates an experience 
which offers suggestions, which, while they may not be exactly new, may 
have for many, great practical value. There were upon his farm several 
depressions which in wet seasons held ponds of water. To drain these by 
ordinary means would have been very expensive, because no gravel could 
be got near the farm, and there was no tile factory in that vicinity. Open 
ditches were out of the question. 

The services of an expert well-borer were secured. He sank several 
test shafts in various parts of the farm, and found that the underlying 
ground was a tenacious blue clay, fourteen to sixteen feet thick, and almost 
perfectly impervious. Beneath this was found a strata of white sand. The 
well-borer and his machine were placed in a wagon, which by means of a 
long rope was hauled to the deepest parts of a pond about an acre in extent. 
Here he bored a well down to the sand, completing the operation before 
sunset of the day when the work began. In thirty-six hours the water had 
disappeared and the pond was dry. To make this short perpendicular drain 
permanent he had it cleared of sediment, sunk the shaft about two feet into 
the bed of sand, and filled to the top -with clean, coarse gravel from a creek 
bed. The gravel was heaped about a foot high above the shaft to strain the 
water properly that the shaft might not become choked. 

They are thousands of places in the West where, year after year, farmers 
have plowed around such wet spots, giving them up to the possession of 
rushes and frogs. Yet they could be drained easily by a few houi-s' work. 
In Western Michigan a large swamp lay for years on the southern edge of a 
village, a noisome barrier to progress and a bone of contention in village and 
township pohtics. To drain it a large ditch a mile or two long would have 
been required; but some one, fortunately, discovered that a thin sheet of 
clay was all that kept the water from going down into a deep strata of gravel, 
boulders and sand. The wells were sunk and the swamp thoroughly drained 
at an almost nominal cost, leaving rich black soil, which is the most produc- 
tive and valuable in all that district. There may be thousands of similar 
swamps, where two or three days spent in sinking test shafts would show a 
ready means for converting sloughs or swamps into fields of wonderful 
fertility. 

Important Use of Coal Oil — A Southern farmer says: " I once read an 
article enumerating some of the practical uses to which coal oil can be suc- 
cessfully put, in which the writer suggested that it would be an effective 
remedy against the apparently indestructible bott or grub in horses. I had 
a horse which had always been sohopelessly infected with bo;h grubs and 
the small intestinal worm, that he could never be kept in a better condition 
than that of a skeleton, and with a ravenous appetite, and the best of treat- 
ment Aviththe use of all known remedies, appeared to be nothing more or 
less than an improved type of a successful worm manufactory. Out of pa- 
tience and disgusted with my patient, and not knowing how much kerosene 
a horse could take without injury, yet determined to " kill or cure " — not 
caring much which— I commenced to drench with a gill of oil, intending to 
double the dose every day till a " cure " or a " kill " was effected. On the 



AROUND THE FARM. 271 

first day I gave a gill, on the next a half a pint, and on the third a pint, and 
it was very soon apparent that that was enough both for the worms and the 
horse. Large quantities of both kinds passed, and the horse appeared to be 
on the point of passing too, but he didn't; and soon after all the usual symp- 
toms of worms had disappeared, and the horse commenced to improve rap- 
idly in flesh and general condition, and is now in better condition thaa I 
have ever seen him, and still imprcving. 

" I also experimented with kerosene on cut nails to make them take the 
place of wrought nails in a cart body I was building. I brought the nails to 
a red heat, dropped them into the oil and let them stand until cool, when 
they could be clinched, bent and twisted into any desirable shape almost 
with as much case and safety as a piece of wire, of the same size. My cart 
body required 100 nails, for which any blacksmith would have charged me 
one dollar. Two pounds of ten penny nails cost ten cents, leaving a balance 
of ninety cents in favor of the kerosene. This is a small item, but the farmer 
can save many such during the year, and it is the little things that pay." 

Draining AVet Liand. — The objects of draining are: 

1. To carry off surface water, by open drains. 

2. To lower the water line. 

3. To prevent waste of the surface-applied manure, by washing off the 
soluble elements before they become incorporated in the soil. 

4. To put the soil in a condition to be benefitted by the use of lime, ashea 
and alkaline substances. There is no use in manuring or liming land that 
lies under water half the year. 

5. To make the land a better absorbent of ammoniacal. nitrogenous and 
carbonic acid gases — so necessary for the growth of all crops. 

6. To make the soil more porous, so that rains and melted snow shall 
descend through the soil, leaving their fertilizing elements in the earth that 
has acted as a filter, instead of flooding the surface and carrying all their 
rich freights off of the land. 

The infinitely wise Father has provided a vast reservoir of the richest 
agricultural elements which He pours upon the earth, in the rain and snow, 
for us to utilize. The science of agriculture is teaching the wise how to se- 
cure and utilize these elements. One way to do it is, to render the soil 
porous and friable, ready to receive and hold the nitrogen and carbonic acid 
gas that is precipitated upon it in showers and snow. The nitrogen thus 
precipitated by rains goes down to the alkaline elements constantly being 
liberated in the soil and unites with the potash, soda and hme, forming the 
nitrates of lime and soda and potash, thus making the soil one vast labora- 
tory, on nature's grand scale, for the production of a fertilizer that will never 
deplete but constantly enrich the lands of the intelligent agriculturist. 

7. To enable the farmer to start his plow from ten days to three weeks 
earlier in the spring, and to keep it going when lands undrained are unfit to 
work. The time lost on undrained lands in the spi'ing and fall and after 
lieavy rains, which can be improved on well drained lands, will be sufficient 
in from one to three years to satisfactorily drain most farms. 

8. To make the land earlier and later. Well drained land is much 
warmer and advances the growth of plants faster than land satvirated with 
water. As we can start our plows from ten days to three weeks earlier on 
drained fields than on undrained, there is more than a corresponding differ- 
ence in maturing of the crops in consequence of a warmer and quicker soil. 
And as the plow can run later in the season when the fall rains are made to 



272 THE FABM. 

percolate through the soil into drains, so the season is not only earlier in 
the spring but correspondingly prolonged in the fall, enabling one team to 
accomplish during the season much more -work. Every farmer knows what 
a rush and hurry there is, when ground is undrained, to push things when 
soil is tempered just right for work. Well drained land is always tempered 
right. Steady work, which accomplishes the most, and not hurry, becomes 
the order of the day, while there is always time to do everything well. 

9. Another object of draining is to deepen the soil. Where the water 
line has been six inches from the surface, that is the depth of the man's farm 
for all practical purposes. Neither cereals nor root crops will go down below 
the water line. Trees do badly. Apples, pears and quinces blight when the 
top roots go below the water line. Lowering the water line twelve inches 
gives the tiller of the soil a new farm more valuable than the first. The 
potash, soda, phosphoric acid and lime of the first six inches has sunk down 
into the strata below. As these substances, so necessary to the growth of 
plants, sink down into the earth w^hen wet, so they rise in the form of nitrate 
when the ground is dry. So that underdraining gives the farmer control 
by clovering and root cropping, of more valuable elements and greater 
quantities of them, than he can afford to buy. 

10. The last object of draining we Avill mention is, to render the farm and 
neighborhood more healthy. This is no unimportant consideration. We 
know of districts of country many miles square which twelve years ago were 
greatly subject to chills and fevers, biit wluch, by only partially draining and 
liming, have become almost entirely free fi-om these mafadies. It is just 
what any thinking person would suppose. Where the land is low and the 
water li^es either on the surface or within an inch or two of it, the surface 
vegetation is decomposed by the action of the moisture as soon as the warm 
rays of the sun fall iipon it. Malarial marsh gas is eliminated; bilious and 
intermittent fever, stomach and bowel afflictions, that carry off numbers of 
children, follow as a natural and necessary consequence. Where there is 
only a small pond hole, that dries up in summer, near the house, doctors 
are sure to be in demand. Wo hardly know where to stop writing on this 
important subject. Many other reasons for draining will readily suggest 
themselves, and farmers should study the various methods of draining wet 
land. 

How to Cure Hams. — This receipt is fifty years old, and it is the best. 
To each twenty pounds of fresh meat make a mixture of one-fourth of a 
pound of brown sugar and a dessertspoonful of ground saltpetre; rub this 
well by hand into the meat; then with coarse salt cover the bottom of a bar- 
rel, say to half an inch; put in hams, and cover with half an inch of salt, and 
so on until the barrel is full; hams should remain in a cool'place four weeks; 
Avhen salted, wipe and dry them, and get some whole black pepper, which 
you must grind yourself, and pepper thoroughly, especially about the hock 
and bone; let the ham lie for two days; then smoke for eight weeks. 

Axle-Grease. — A first-rate axle-grease is made as follows: Dissolve half 
a pound of common soda in one gallon of water; add three pounds of tallow 
and six pounds of palm oil, or ten pounds of palm oil only. Heat them to- 
gether to 200 or 210 degrees Fahr.; mix, and keep the mixture constantly 
stirred until the composition is cooled down to 60 or 70 degrees. A thinner 
composition is made with half a pound of soda, one gallon of water, one gal- 
lon of I ape oil, and a quarter of a pound of tallow, or palm oil. , 



AROUND THE FARM. 273 

Driving Nails Into Hard Wood — The editor of an agricultural peri- 
odical wituessed an experiment of driving nails into hard seasoned timber, 
fairlj^ dried. He says that the first two nails, after passing through a pine 
board, entered about one inch, and then doubled down undei» the hammer: 
but on dipping the points of the other six or eight nails into lard, every one 
was driven home without the least difficulty. Carpenters Avho are engaged 
in repairing old buildings sometimes carry a small lump of lard or tallow for 
this purpose on one of their boots or shoes.. 

Good Well Ciirtoing.—The best timber for curbing a well is hemlock, 
which is very durable when under water, and gives no flavor to the water. 
Of the woods some mention, all would rot very quickly except pine and 
tamarack, but pine is objectionable on account of its strong flavor. If hem- 
lock cannot be procured, tamarack would be the best. The timber should 
be cut in two or three inch planks, and put together by halving the timbers 
at the end, and holding the halved parts dovetailed or cornered together, so 
that the sides cannot be forced in by the pressure of the earth, the upper 
half of one piece fitting upon the lower half of the other piece. 

To Repair Leaky Roofe. — One of the very best preparations for repair- 
ing roofs that leak is to procure coal tar at the gas-works, and mix finely- 
sifted coal ashes or road dust with it till about as thick as mortar. Plaster 
with this carefully around leaky-roofed valleys or gutters, or about chimney 
flushings. It will soon set as hard as stone, and apparently as indestructi- 
ble. This preparation is very cheap, and would probably answer equally 
well spread all over a rcof previously laid with felt or roofing paper. Once 
put on properly, it would seem to be there for all time. 

A Cheap Rain Gange. — To make a rain gauge for farmers' use, just as 
good as if it cost three dollars, take a quart fruit can free from dents, hold 
the top in the fire until the solder is melted, then knock it off; place the can 
on a post, with brackets nailed around to keep it in place. Make a rule six 
inches long, divided into tenths of inches — one made out of a strip of slate is 
best. Measure the rain every morning after falling. An inch of rain is a 
good rainfall, if it comes gently. This in weight will *be 226,875 pounds, or 
113 tons 875 pounds to the acre. 

Burning Stumps. — Tree stumps are said to be easily removed by boring 
a two-inch hole eighteen inches deep into the stump. Do this in the fall, 
and fill with a concentrated solution of saltpetre, and plug up to keep out 
water. By spring it wall have permeated every part. Then fill the hole with 
kerosene, set on fire, and the whole stump, it is said, will be consumed, 
even to the roots. It would seem to be feasible, and it is certainly an 
easy way to get rid of stumps. The ashes Avill remain to fertilize the soil. 

How to Get Rid of Rats. — The English Standard says: " Several corre- 
spondents write to announce the complete extirpation of rats and mice from 
their cow-stalls and piggeries since the adoption of this simple plan: A mix- 
ture of two parts well-bruised common squills and three parts finely-chopped 
bacon is made into a stiff mass, with as much meal as may be required, and 
then baked into small cakes, which are put down for the rats to eat." 

Wliitewasli Tliat Will Stick. — To make whitewash that will not wash 
off by the rain, one peck of lime should be slaked m five gallons of water, in 
which one pound of rice has been boiled iintil it is all dissolved. The rice 



274 THE FARM. 

water should be need hot, and the mixture covered up closely until the lime 
is slaked. Then add a pound of salt, and the wash heated to boiling when 
used. It is not an expensive preparation. It can be prepared by any 
person wishing to use a goqd wash, and is highly satisfactory. Brother 
farmers, try it. 

Signs of a Prosperous Parme'r. — When lights are seen burning in his 
house before the break of day, in winter especially, it shows that the day 
will never break on the breaking in of the winter of adversity. 

When you see him drive his work instead of his work driving him, it 
shows that he will never be driven from good resolutions, and that he will 
certainly work his way to prosperity. 

When he has a house sepai-ate from the main building purposely for 
ashes, and an iron or tin vessel to transport them, it shows that he never 
built his dwelUng for a funeral pyre for his family, and perhaps himself. 

W'^hen his hog-pen is boarded outside and in, it shows that he is " going 
the whole hog or none," in keeping plenty inside his house and poverty out. 

When his sled is safely housed in summer, and his farming implements 
covered both winter and summer, it plainly shows that he will have a good 
house over his head in the summer of early life and the winter of old age. 

When his cattle are properly shielded and fed in winter it evinces that he 
is acting according to Scripture, which says that " a merciful man is merciful 
to his beast." 

When he is seen subscribing for a newspaper and paying for it in advance, 
it shows that he is speaking like a book respecting the latest movements in 
agriculture, and that he will never get his walking papers to the land of 
poverty. 

To Clean an Old Roof— Those wishing to know the best means of re- 
moving moss and earth accumulations from an old shingle roof, are advised 
to sprinkle lime freely along the comb of the roof, and let the rains dissolve 
and carry it over the shingles. Every particle of dirt and moss will be re- 
moved by it. If kept clean, shingles will last much longer. This method 
is as good and cheaper than any direct application to the shingles. 

Paint for Farmers — Farmers will find the following profitable for* 
house or fence pamt: Skim milk, two quarts; fresh slaked lime, eight ounces; 
linseed oil, six ounces; white burgundy pitch, two ounces; Spanish white, 
three pounds. The Hme is to be slaked in water, exposed to the air and 
then mixed with about one-fourth of the milk; the oil in which the pitch is 
dissolved to be added a Uttle at a time, then the rest of the milk, and after- 
ward the Spanish white. This is sufficient for twenty-seven yards, two coats. 
This is for white paint. If desirable, any other color may be produced; 
thus, if cream color is desired, in place of the part of Spanish white use the 
other alone. 

To Prevent a Carriage from Spotting — A newly-varnished carriage 
is liable to spot. To prevent this some wash the carriage two or three times 
in clean cold Avater applied with a sponge instead of using a hose; this will 
help harden the surface, and prevent it to some extent from being injured by 
the mud or water getting splashed on the job. Never let mud dry on the 
surface, and then wash off expecting to see no spots on the varnish. You 
will certainly be disappointed, and the only way to remedy this evil will be 
to have it revamished. Soft watetia better than hard water for the washing 



AROUND THE FARM. 275 

of carriages, as the lime which is in the hard water is rery liable to injure 
the varnish. 

Removing Carbonic Acid Gas or Foul Air from Wells. A corre- 
spondent gives an account of an extemporized apparatus for removing car- 
bonic acid gas from wells. It was simply an opened out umbrella let down and 
rapidly hauled up a number of times in succession. The effect was to re- 
move the gas in a few minutes from a well so foul as to instantly extinguish 
a candle previous to the use of the umbrella. Whenever there is an escape 
of gas in an apartment, the adoption of this plan will be found useful. 

To Render AVood Uninflammatole—Professor Kedzie, of the Agri- 
cultural College of Michigan, an expert chemist, says that a paint or wash 
made of skim milk, thoroughly skimmed, and water brine, will render wood 
uninflammable, and he proved it by experiment. He said this paint, or white- 
wash, is durable, very cheap, impervious to water, of agreeable color, and, 
as it will prevent wood from taking fire, urged its use, particularly on roofs, 
outbuildings, barns, etc. 

Remedy for Burdoclcs. — It is said that a certain and speedy remedy 
for burdocks has been found in kerosene oil. A small quantity poured into 
the heart of a plant, directly after cutting, leaves no trace of their existence 
save a small hole in the earth where they stood, Eefined or crude oil will 
accomphsh the purpose just as well. 

Paint for One Cent a Pound. — To one gallon of soft, hot water, add 
four pounds sulphate of zinc (crude). Let it dissolve perfectly, and a sedi- 
ment will settle at the bottom. Turn the clear solution into another vessel. 
To one gallon of paint (lead and oil), mix one gallon of the compound. Stir 
it into the paint slowly for ten or fifteen minutes, and the compound and 
paint will perfectly combine. If too thick thin it with turpentine. 

A Good Word for Toads. — Toads, according to Prof. Miles, live almost 
entirely upon slugs, caterpillars, beetles and other insects, making their 
rounds at night, when the farmer is asleep— and the birds, too— and the in- 
sects are supposed to be having their own way. French farmers understand 
these' facts so well that they purchase toads, at so much a dozen, and turn 
them loose. 

Protect tile S-wallow. — Among insectivorous birds the swallow ia 
worthy of great encouragement. An examination of the stomachs of eight- 
een swallows killed at different seasons of the year showed that they con- 
tained an average of 406 undigested insects each, and not a single grain of 
corn (of any kind), or the least particle of fruit or a trace of any vegetable. 

Plan for Keeping Hams. — A very good way of keeping hams is to wrap 
them in strong brown paper so that the ashes cannot come in contact with 
them. Then pack them in clean, hard wood ashes, in dry boxes or barrels. 
This will keep well cured hams qiiite sweet, as the ashes serve as a protec- 
tion against insects. The boxes should be set in a cool, dry place. 

Improving Lawns. — ^For ridding lawns of unsightly weeds, such as 
plantain and dandelions, the following plan is recommended by an experi- 
enced gardener: To the end of a Ught wooden rod attach a small sponge, 
or better, wind a few thicknesses of cloth around it, dip the sponge in oil of 



276 THE FARM. 

vitriol, and with it touch the heart of the weed. The oil of viti'ol may be car- 
ried in a wide-mouthed bottle at the end of another rod. 

Mold ill Cellars. — To get rid of mold in cellars, put some roll brimstone 
into a pan and set fire to it; close the doors, making the cellar as nearly air- 
tight as possible, when the fungi will be destroyed and the mold dried up. 
Repeat this simple and inexpensive operation every two or three months for 
tAvo or three hours at a time. 

Thawing Frozen Apples._It is stated by those who have had the ad- 
vantage of experience, that if apples which have been frozen are thawed in 
the dark they are uninjured; but if in the light, they very soon become 
unfit for use. We should suppose the same result woiild most likely appear 
if the experiment were tried with potatoes. 

"Wasliing Harness—It is bad policy to wash harness with soap, as the 
potash injures the leather. If the harness becomes rusty rub off the dirt as 
well as possible with a soft brush, and apply a dressing of grain black, fol- 
lowed with oil or tallow, which will fasten the color and make the leather 
soft and pliable. 

A Good Suggestion About Harness. — Add a little glycerine to the 
grease applied to harness, and it will be kept in a soft and pUable state, in 
spite of the ammoniacal exhalations of the stable, vfhich tend to make it 
brittle. 

Gas Tar for "Wagon Wlieels. — A fanner who has tried it speaks in the 
■ highest praise of gas tar for painting wagon wheels, stating that it tightens 
tires and spokes better than anything that can be tried. 

Mice in tlie Grain Cliest. — If you are troubled about the grain chest 
with mice, watch for their holes and scatter a little copperas in them. A few 
grains will drive them away. 

Rats and 3Iice. — Rats and mice will go into a trap much more readily if 
a piece of looking-glass is put in any part of the trap where they can see 
themselves. They are social little creatures, and where they can see any of 
their tribe, there they will go. 




This book 13 a complete 
ready reference library for 
farmers and housekeepers, 
being filled with useful 
fa''.t3, hints and suggestions 
upon all subjects pertain- 
ing to rural and domestic 
afftiirs, embracing the re- 
sults of experiment and 
re-tearch by scientific and 
practical men and women 
In all civilized countries. 
It contains the cream or 
substance of more than a 
dozen ordinary agricultural 
an I household books, and is 
the only first-class work of 
the kind ever sold at less 
than six dollars. It is a 
b )ok to be consulted every 
day in any emergency, and 
to be read at all times with 
Interest and profit. It is 
Buch a book as every farmer 
and housekeeper needs and 
ought to have, supplying 
the universal want of a re- 
liable counsellor upon every 
topic relating to the farm 
and household, and will 
save its small cost every 
week in the year. The work 
is profusely illustrated, and 
is divided Into two general 
headings, viz. : The Farm and The 'Household, each of which occupies half the 
book. These are again sub-divided into a number of departments, as follows : 

Rural Architecfure — Fences and Gates —Field Crops — Feriilizers — The 
Garden — Orchard and Vineyard -Small Fruits — Live Stock— The 
Poultry Yard — The Dairy — The Apiary — Farm Implements— Around 
the Farm — Cooking Receipts — Ladies' Fancy Work- Floriculture — 
The Home Physician —The Toilet -The Laundry — Hints and Helps. 

All of the above subjects are fully and ably treated in this valuable book. 
It is a vast storehouse of useful facts, hints and suggestions of the utmost 
Value to farmers and housekeepers, and no man who has a home and an acre 
or more of land can afford to be without it. The publishers know full well 
that farmers are a class who have no money to waste vtpon luxuries, and are 
equally well aware that the purchase of this book will be to them the most 
profitable of Investments. While other books of this character are sold for $6 
and $10, for all practical purposes they are no better than this. The book 
meets a universal want, and should find its way into every rural home. The 
Farm and household CYCL,OP.a;DiA is a large and handsome book of 544 
pages, 12mo, printed upon fine paper, and elegantly bound in cloth, embel- 
lished with artistic designs In black and gold. It contains Two Hundred and 
Forfy-nine Ilhistrations, the original cost of which was nearly $5,0C0. The 
book will be sent by mail, post paid, upon receipt of price, only One Dollar. 
It is as large and as handsomely gotten up as books usually sold at $1..50 and 
$2, and its contents are worth the weight of the book in gold to every farmer 
and housekeeper. 

Address all orders : THE PHELPS PUBLISHING CO., 

Springfield, Mass. 
N.B.— Every purchaser of this book will receive Fabm and Home for one year. 



A BOOS THAT EVERY AMERICAN CITIZEN SHOULD POSSESS I 

THE POPDLAR HISTORY of i CIVIL ffAB! 

We suppose that almost any 
intelligent American of the 
present day, if he were limited 
to the possession of tfuee books, 
would select as tollows: 1. The 
Bible; 2. A Dictionarj': 3. A 
Histoiy of the Civil War. The 
great Civil War between the 
North and Soutli, in the years 
1861 to 1865 inclusive, was, next 
to the American Revolution, 
the most stupendous event in 
the history oi our great country. 
During tliose memorable four 
years, when our lair land was 
bathed in the blood of its 
gallant eons, the whole world 
looked on with breathless in- 
terest. It is but natural that 
an event of such paramount 
importance in our national 
history should have engaged 
the attention of every promi- 
nent American historian. Al- 
most a multitude of books di- 
rectly bearing upon the Rebel- 
lion have been published. Yet 
it is our firm belief that the 
War Histories heretofore pub- 
lished are but meagerly adapt- 
ed to the wants of the masses 
of American citizens to-day; 
first, because they are too ex- 
pensive, involving an outlay 
greater than the majority of 
people can afford to make ; and, 
second, because they are too 
lengthy, going so minutely into 
particulars and details that 
they become dry and uninter- 
esting. This work is most aptly and appropriately entitled ' The Popi"l.ar History of the 
OiviL War," because it meets the popwta/- demand foran aulhentichislory of the Rebellion, 
written in the most entertaining manner and published at a price within the reach of all. 
Thebookiaa thorough, complete and authentic history, not only of every imi ortant battle 
and naval engagement that occurred during the war. but if likewise very complete in its 
treatmentof the political conditions, sectional differences and other causes which brought 
on the great conflict. Itis.justsucli a war history as every American citizen should possess, 
and will prove of the utmost interest and value, not only to those who well remember, and 
soineof whom participated in the war for tlie Union, but especially to that large class who 
liave grown to manhood and womanhood long since the war closed, none of whom, not 
having read and carefully studied the history of the greatest contest of the Nineteenth 
Century, can claim to be well-informed and intelligent American citizens. 

The new edition of this book, now offered, is greatly enlarged, both as to size of page and 
number of page.s, and contains, in addition to the history proper, asketch of The Orand. 
Army of the Repahllc, bya prominent oHicerof the organization, likewise an appendix 
devoted to Anecdotes of the JRebelllon, containing a large collection of humorous, 
pathetic and thrilling nanatives of actual experiences during the war, embracing 
reminiscences of bivouac and battle-field, camp life and picket duty, thrilling adventures of 
scouts and spies, narratives of remarkable heroism, stories of prison life, stories of the great 
Generals, stories of Mr. Lincoln, etc., etc. This additional matter will be found quite as 
interesting as the History itself, and renders this unquestionably one of the best and most 
complete War Books ever published. 

" The Popdlar History of the Civil War " is a large book of 544 pages, 12mo, hand- 
somely printed in lai^e type upon fine paper, and elegantlv bound in cloth, embellislied 
with designs in black and gold. It is profusely and elegantly illustrated, the engravings 
representing scenes of the prominent battle-fields and naval engagements, camp life and 
picket duty, likewi.se portraits of the great Generals, both Union and Confederate, and 
other prominent men upon both sides who were identified with the struggle. It is a most 
magnificent volume, as attractive in appearance as its contents are instructive and enter- 
taining, and would richly grace any man's library or parlor table. The book will be sent 
by mail, post paid, upon receipt of price, only Onie Dollar. No other first-class hLstory 
o£ the Rebellion can be obtained for less than five times that sum, and the majority of books 
upon this subject cost not less than $10.00. 

Address all orders : THE PHELPS PUBLISHING CO., 

SpriniTfleld, Mass. 

N.B.— Every purchaser of this book will receive Fabm and Home for one year. 




A BOOK THAT SHOULD BE IN EVERY AMERICAN HOME 

This is unquestionably 
one of the most interest- 
ing, entertaining and in- 
structive books ever pub- 
Jisbed. It is a universal 
educator for every member 
of the family circle, filled 
■with useful information 
from beginning to end, and 
this Infermation is given in. 
such an attractive and 
pleasing way that the book, 
is quite as entertaining as 
it is Instructive. It treats 
of hundreds of subjects of 
which no man, woman or 
child who seeks to be weU. 
informed can afford to be 
ignorant, yet of which the 
masses of people are en- 
tirely unlearned. It con- 
tains the cream or substance 
of a dozen ordinary vol- 
umes, and is one of the 
most valuable and useful 
books a family can have in 
the house. No living man 
is 80 well informed that he 
may not learn from it. It is 
a book for the masses, for 
old and young, rich and 
poor, and will be read with 
pleasure and profit by all. 
It will likewise be found of 
great value as a work of reference The book Is profusely and elegantly illus- 
trated, and is conveniently divided into departments, as follows : 

Biography.— History.— Natural History.— Travels, Manners and 
Customs, etc.— The World Illustrated.- Useful Arts and 
Manufactures.— Trees, Plants, Fruits, etc. — Great In- 
ventions. — Mining. — Wonders of the Sea. — 
Familiar Science.— Law for the Masses. 
—Statistical and Miscellaneous. 

AH the above subjects are fully and ably treated in this valuable book. It 
is a vast storehouse of useful and entertaining knowledge— unquestionably 
one of the best and most valuable books ever published In any land or 
language. No cyclopaedia ever heretofore published at twice the cost is to be 
compared with this book in point of artistic make-up, beauty and excellence 
of illustration, and quality of contents. As a holiday or birthday present for 
any one nothing more appropriate or acceptable could possibly be selected. 
The family Cyclopedia of Useful Knowledge is a large and handsome 
book of 544 pages, 12mo, printed upon fine paper and elegantly bound In cloth, 
embellished with artistic designs in black and gold. It contains Two Hun- 
dred and Seventy-three Beautiful Illustrations, the original cost of 
which was over $.5,000. The book will be sent by mail, post paid, upon receipt of 
price, only One Dollar. It is as large and as handsomely gotten up as books 
usually sold at $1.50 and $2, and in the quality of its contents Is worth a dozen 
ordinary volumes. 

Address all orders: THE PHELPS PUBLISHING CO., 

Sprin^eld, Mass» 

N.B.— Every purchaser of this book will receive Fabm and Home for one year. 




A FAMOUS BIOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL WORK. 

LIVES OF OTJE PRESIDENTS! 



There is no class of men the 
events of whose lives are so in- 
teresting to American citizens as 
tliose who have been elevated to 
the highest office in the cift of the 
people. This book contains the 
hie of every man who has occu- 
pied the Presidential chair, from 
George Washington to the present 
incumbent. The biographies are 
not brief sketches or outlines, but 
are full, complete and exhaustive, 
narrating every prominent event 
in the life of eacii President, from 
the incidents of his boyhood down 
to his death, or to the present pe- 
riod, together with extracts from 
his most important speeches and 
l)ublic documents. Incidental to 
the biographies, wehaA^e almosta 
complete history of our country, 
Irom the time of the struggle for 
Independence to the present day, 
for no class ol men have been 
more closely identified with our 
1 ational growth than have our 
cliosen rulers, and each Adminis- 
itionhas formed a distinctera 
in American history. Thus, in 
tlie life of Washington we have a 
full account of the military ope- 
rations during the Revolutionary 
War, while in the lives of John 
Adams and Thomas Jefl'erson we 
are made fully acquainted with 
the diplomatic and legislative 
details of that great struggle. 
In the livesof JamesMadisonand 
Andrew Jackson we find a history 
of the War of 1812, in that of Har- 
rison the exciting incidents of the Wars with the Indians, while in thcee of Taylor and 
Pierce a full history of the Mexican War is given. Coming down to the late struggle for the 
Union, we find in the life of Abraham Lincoln a complete "narrative of the political features 
of the contest, and in that of General Grant an account of the more important military 
operations. Thus are historj; and biography blended in this book, and the result is a work 
of the most interesting and instructive character. No person who would be familiar with 
thehistory of his country and the lives of its chosen rulers (and no American citizen can 
claim to be well informed witliout such knowledce), can afl'oid to be without this book, and 
every father should buy it for the instruction of his children. It is written in such an en- 
tertaining manner that young people will read it as readily as a novel, from which no useful 
information isgained. The lives of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln contained 
in this volume are alone worth the price of the bookr 

Th new edition of tliis book, now offered, is greatly enlarged, both as to size of page 
and number of pages, and contains, in addition to the lives of all the Presidents, over one 
hundred pages devoted to the Early History of America, from the discovery by 
Columbus to the period of the Revolutionary War. The graphic narrative here given of the 
early struggles of the Colonists will be found exceedingly interesting, and this additional 
matter, embracing as it does a complete history of the country during the period preceding 
the time of Washington, renders the book complete as a history of the United States, as well 
as one of the most interesting and valuable biographical works ever published. 

"Lives OF OUR Presidents" Is a large book of 544 pages, 12mo, handsomely printed 
from large type upon fine paper, and elegantly bound in cloth, embellished with artistic 
designs in gold and black. It contains a full page portrait, reproduced from a steel plate, 
of each of the Presidents, with a fac-simile of his autograph, together with many other 
beautiful and interesting illustrations, such as the birthplaces and early homes of the 
Presidents, historical scenes and incidents, public buildings, etc. It is a book which would 
grace any library or parlor table; it is a book which will be read with both pleasure and 
profit, and may be handed down in a household from generation togeneration, for itis a nar- 
rative of facts and not of fiction, and will be ,iust as interesting and instructive to your 
children's children as it is to yourself. "Lives of our Presidents" will be sent by mail, 
Tiost-paid, to any addres.s, upon receipt of price, only One Dollar. It is the cheapest 
book of the kind ever issued, no work of its scope and character ever having been published 
heretofore for twice that sum. 

Address all orders : THE PHELPS PUBLISHING CO., 

Springfleld, Mass. 
N.B.— Every purchaser of this book will receive Fabm AND Home for one year. 




A BOOir THAT EVERY LADY NEEDS, 

THE LADIES' GUIDE 

TO FAMTCY WOHK. 




How to make the Home Beautiful at small cost 
is asubject now uppermost in the mind of every 
lady of good taste. This book is a complete 
practical instructor in every description of Ladies' 
Fancy Work, and the only first-class work of the 
kind ever publislied at a low price. It contains 
nearly 300 Illnstratlons, and the instruc- 
tions given are so plain and simple tliat by their 
aid even a child may make the many beautiful 
things which the book describes. It gives plain 
and practical instructions in Drawing, Oil Paint 
ing and making Wax Flowers ; likewise all kinds 
of Fancy Needle Work, Artistic Embroidery, Lace 
Work, Knitting, Tatting, Crochet and Net Work. 
It contains designs for Monograms, Initials, Cross 
Stitch Patterns, Knit Edgings, Embroidered Bor- 
ders and Corners, Macrame Work, Applique Em- 
broidery, Berlin Work, Java Canvas Work, Tricot 
and Burlaps, Antique Lace, Beaded Lace, Darned 
Net Work, Tidies, Lambrequins, Ottomans, 
Counterpanes, Rugs, Carriage Robes, Brackets, 
Wall Pockets, Waste Paper Baskets, Work Boxes, 
Work Baskets, Work Bags, Pen Wipers, Hanging Baskets, Catchalls, Pin Cushions, Foot- 
stools, Handkerchief Boxes, Glo%'e Boxes, Card Baskets, Sofa Pillow's, Table Covers, Table 
Scarfs, Screens, Scrap Bags, Hand Bags, Table Mats, Toilet Mats, Lamp Mats, Lamp Shades, 
Pillow Shams, Pillow Sham Holders, Curtains, Toilet Stands, Picture Frames, Slipper 
Cases, Letter Cases, Toilet Sets, Clothes Brush Holders, Cigar Boxes, Hassock* Sachets, 
Fancy Purses, Slippers, Dressing Gowns, Music Portfolios, Knife Cases, Fans, Flower Baskets, 
Plant Stands, Flower Pot Covers, Shawls, Dress Trimmings, Window Shades, Feather Work, 
Spatter Work, Leaf Photographs, and many other things. It is Shook that should be in 
every American household. With it as a guide you may make hundreds of beautiful 
things for the adornment of 
your home and for presents to 
your friends at the most trifling 
expense, and no employment 
for ladies is more fascinating 
and useful. The book will repay 
its smal 1 cost many times over 
in a very short time. Every lady 
will be delighted with it. It is 
a large book of 64 large 3- 
column pages, with handsome 
cover, is finely printed, and, 
as above stated, contains nearly 
300 illustraitions. It will be sent 
by mail, postpaid, upon receipt 
of price, only Tiventy-fiTe 
Cents . 




Address all orders: 



THE PHELPS PUBLISHING CO., 

Spriiigrfleld, Mass. 



Books, Three Cents Each! 



The followinpr books are published in neat pamphlet form, many of them handsomely 
illustrated, and all are printed from good tyf>e ujjon good paper. They treat of a ijreat 
variety of subjects, and we think no one can examine the list without finding therein piany 
that he or she would like to possess. In cloth-bound form these books would cost $1.0i) 
each. Each book is complete in itself. 



1. The Widoic Bedott Papers. This is the 
book over which your grand mothers laugh- 
ed till they cried, and it is just as funny to- 
day as it ever was. 

2. Fancji Work for Home Adornment, an 
entirely "new work upon this subject, con- 
taining easy and practical instructions for 
making fancy baskets, wall pockets, brack- 
ets, needle work, embroidery, etc., etc., pro- 
fusely and elegantly illustrated. 

3. Grimm's E<ir1y Storien for the Young. 
The linest collection of fairy stories ever 
published. The children will be delighted 
with them. 

4. The Lndi/ of the Lake. By RlR WALTER 
Scott. "The Lady of the Lake" is a 
romance in verse, and of all the works of 
Scott, none is more beautiful than this. 

5. Manual of Etiquette for Ladies and 
Gentlemen, a guide to politeness and good 
breeding, giving the rules of modern eti- 
quette for all occasions. 

6. The standard Letter Writer, for Ladies 
and (ientlemen, a complete guide to corre- 
spondence, giving plain directions for the 
composition" of letters of every kind, witli 
innumerable forms and examples. 

7. Winter Evening Jierrealion.i, a large 
collection of Acting Charades, Tableaux, 
Games, Puzzles, etc., for social gatherings, 
private theatricals, and evenings at home; 
illustrated. 

8. DiaJogucn, Recitalionx and Readingn, a 
large and choice collection for school exhi- 
bitions and public and private entertain- 
ments. 

9. Parlor Magir and Cliemiral E.rperimenti>, 
a book which tells how to perform hundreds 
of amusing tricks in magic and instructive 
experiments with simple agents. 

10. The Home Cook Book and Family Phg- 
/tirian, containing hundreds of excellent 
cooking receipts and hints to housekeepers, 
also telling how to cure all common ailments 
by simple home r dies. 

11. ilannem n, Cu.itoms in Far Atray 
Lands, a very int. -estlng and instructive 
book of travels, describing the peculiar life, 
habits, manners and customs of the people 
of for<»ign countries; illustrated. 

12. Sixteen Complete Stories by Popular 
Authors, embracing love, humorous and 
«letective stories, stories of society life, of 
adventure, of railway life, etc., all very in- 
teresting. 

la. The Bwlgel of Wit, ITumor and Fun, a 
large collection of the best funny stories, 
sketches, anecdotes, poems and jokes that 
have been written for some years; illus- 

U. Uoeful Knowledge for the Million, a 
hundybbok of useful information for all, 
upon many and various subjects; illustrat- 
ed. 



15. Called Bark. A Novel. By Hugh 
Conway, author of '• Dark Days," etc. 

16. At the World's Mercy. A Novel. By 
Florence Warden, author of "The House 
on the Marsh," etc. 

17. Mildred Treeanion. A Novel. By "THE 
DUCHK8S," author of " Molly Bawn." etc. 

18. Dark Days. A Novel. By HUGH CON- 
WAY, author of "Called Back," etc. 

19. The Mystery of the Holly Tree. A Novel. 
By the author of " Dora Thome." 

20. Shadows on the Snow. A Novel. By B. 
L. Farjeon, author of "Bread-and-Cheese 
and Kisses," etc. 

21. The Grey Woman. A Novel. By Mrs. 
Gaskell, author of " Mary Barton," etc. 

22. The Frozen Deep. A Novel. By WILKIK 
Collins, author of "The Woman in White," 
etc. 

Zi. Red (T,)urt Farm. A Novel. By Mrs. 
Henry Wood, author of " East Lynne," etc. 

24. In Cinrid's Net. A Novel. By the author 
of "Dora Thome." 

25. Bark to the Old Home. A Novel. By 
Mary Cecil Hay, author of " Hidden Perils," 
etc. 

26. John Bowerlmnk's Wife. A Novel. By 
Miss Mulock, author of "John Halifax, Gen- 
tleman, "etc. 

27. Lady Gwendoline's Dream. A Novel. By 
the author of " Dora Thome." 

28. Jasper Dane's Secret. A Novel. Bf 
Miss M. E. Braddon, author of "Aurora 
Floyd," etc. 

29. Leoline. A Novel. By Mary CECIL HaT, 
author of "Brenda Yorke,"etc. 

30. GahrieVs Marriage. A Novel. ByWiLKIK 
Collins, author of " No Name," etc. 

31. Darid Hunt. A Novel. By Mrs. ANN S. 
Stephens, autlior of " Fashion and Famine," 

32. Reaping the Whirlwind. A Novel. By 
Mary Cecil Hay, author of " Old Middleton's 
Money," etc. 

33. Dwlley Carleon. A Novel. By Miss M. 
E. Braddon, author of "Lady Audley's 
Secret." etc. 

34. Essica- or. The Mystery of the Head- 
lands. A Novel. By Etta W. Pikrce, author 
of "The Birth Mark," etc. 

35. A Golden Daicn. A Novel. By the 
author of " Dora Thome." 

36. Valerie's Fate. A Novel. By Mrs. ALEX- 
ANDER, author of "The Wooing O't," etc. 

37. Sister Rose. A Novel. By Wilkie Col- 
LIN.S, author of "The Woman in White," etc. 

.38. Anne. A Novel. By Mrs. Henry Wood, 
author of "East Lvnne," etc. 

39. The Laurel Bush. A Novel. By Miss 
MuLOCK. author of "John Halifax, Gentle- 
man," etc. 

40. Amos Barton. A Novel. By Georoe 
Eliot, author of "Adam Bede," "The 
Mill on the Floss," etc. 



89- Any /our of the above books will be sent by mail, post-paid, upon receipt of 19 
Cents; any ten for Ita Cents; any twenty forSO Cents; the entire list (40 books) for 
91.00. 

Address all orders : THE PHELPS PUBLISH 1X6 CO, 

V >i fi CI ^ Sprliigrfleld, Masis. 



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